Football great Graeme Souness CBE is preparing for another mammoth challenge on Wednesday 30th April – swimming the English Channel both ways to raise funds for epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a condition also known as “butterfly skin”.
Teaming up with six others, Graeme will brave the cold waters to raise vital awareness of EB, a rare condition that causes the skin to blister and tear as easily as the wings of a butterfly. Life with EB involves daily pain and constant care.
Graeme became a fundraising hero in June 2023 after swimming the Channel solo and raising over £1.5 million for EB charity DEBRA UK. Now, he’s doubling the distance to make an even bigger impact.
Commenting on his latest fundraising challenge, Graeme said:
“I was truly blown away by the support we got back in 2023. I had to do something for my wee friend, Isla, and the thousands of other children and adults affected by this cruel condition.
With the money raised DEBRA UK was able to start testing drugs which could be life-changing but there are many more drugs that they need to test if we are to secure effective treatments for every form of EB, treatments that could help stop the extreme pain. This is why we’re getting back in the water once again. It’s going to be tough; I’m 71 now and it’s double the distance, but I know we can do this, we must do this, we must be the difference for EB”.
The swim begins at 11:30am from Dover Harbour, with the team aiming to raise £750,000 to fund two new clinical trials. These could lead to breakthrough treatments that ease some of EB’s most severe symptoms, including raw wounds, blistering, and constant itching.
To find out more about EB, visit www.debra.org.uk and to donate, go to www.give.as/debra.
