Jono Ridler swam 1,367 kilometers along the coast of New Zealand's North Island. That is roughly the distance from London to Rome — except Ridler did it in the water, over 90 days, to save the ocean. His effort, called Swim4TheOcean, became the heart of a winning campaign by New Zealand's Black Foils sailing team, who just took home the top prize in SailGP's 2026 Impact League for ocean advocacy.
SailGP is a championship of high-speed sailing races featuring identical catamarans that skim across the water at up to 100 kilometers per hour. But the Impact League rewards something different — it tracks what teams do when they are not racing. Teams earn points for projects that protect the environment, include communities, and create real-world change. Think of it as a competition to see who can make the biggest positive difference.
The Black Foils focused on one of New Zealand's most urgent ocean problems: bottom trawling. This is a fishing method where heavy nets are dragged along the seafloor, damaging fragile ecosystems like seamounts — underwater mountains that are home to unique sea life. The Black Foils, led by co-CEO and Olympic sailing champion Blair Tuke, teamed up with the nonprofit Live Ocean to stop this practice.
Ridler's marathon swim became their megaphone. He swam an average of 15 kilometers every single day, braving cold water, rough waves, and sheer exhaustion. The physical feat drew national attention. The Black Foils athletes joined him at community events, took to the water in solidarity, and met with politicians from across the political spectrum to push for stronger protections.
The campaign's momentum grew like a snowball. It ended with a 73,647-signature petition presented to New Zealand's Parliament, demanding an end to bottom trawling permits on the high seas and better protection for seamount ecosystems. The effort generated nearly 400 million media impressions worldwide and was covered in about 400 news articles. It moved the Black Foils to the top of the Impact League leaderboard.
"What Jono did is one of the greatest endurance feats of all time, but this was always more than just a swim — it was a platform to create change," Tuke said. "We saw New Zealanders really come around this with a snowball of support, giving us a powerful platform to drive positive action for the ocean."
The Black Foils beat out other strong contenders. Brazil's team removed more than 8 tons of plastic and fishing gear from Guanabara Bay, the sailing venue for the Rio Olympics, while paying local fishermen well above the minimum wage. France and Germany tied for third place — the first tie in Impact League history — with France supporting sustainable seaweed farming and Germany using genetic research to study marine biodiversity.
SailGP's Head of Impact, Iona Neilson, said the league shows that world-class athletes can apply the same drive they use in competition to solving real problems. "Sustainability is not a side initiative — it can be an integral part of what sporting excellence looks like," she said.
The Black Foils' win is not just a trophy. It is a signal that athlete voices and creative campaigns can shift public opinion and push governments to protect the oceans that belong to everyone.