English Channel swimmer denied UK visa
July 31 2009 by Rebekah Nahai
UK visas are required to swim the Channel
Two friends who applied to swim across the English Channel may have to forfeit a joint journey after one was denied a UK visa.
Usman Javaid and David Gatz, members of the swim team at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio, want to honour their international friendship and raise money for charity by swimming across the Channel.
But Javaid, a 22-year-old native of Pakistan, is waiting in Islamabad for a decision on his second UK visa application.
“They weren’t satisfied I was going to Britain for the stated purpose,” he said.
The UK Border Agency said in a statement that they denied the UK visa because they are not convinced of Javaid’s student status.
They have not spoken with his Ohio university.
Javaid says his passport contains a valid US student visa and he submitted appropriate documentation showing his scheduled swim with the Channel Swimming Association.
The UK Border Agency said in a statement, "Where an applicant fails to demonstrate they meet the relevant rules, their application will be refused.”
Javaid is awaiting approval from the British High Commissioner for an emergency UK visa. The Channel Swimming Association has sent additional documentation to the High Commissioner confirming the student’s “swim window” of July 29 – August 6.
In the meantime, Gatz and the friends’ head swim coach, Dick Hawes, are waiting in Dover, England, where Gatz continues his training in the Channel.
“There is some frustration,” he said Thursday, “but we're also optimistic.”
Prior to travelling, the friends set up the organisation Channeling Peace to raise funds for the charity Doctors Without Borders. The idea came to them earlier this year as they followed reports of the Taliban’s actions in Pakistan which displaced thousands of people.
“We wanted to donate to an organization that was helping people there,” Javaid said.
“Even if my UK visa doesn't go through, we'll continue with Channeling Peace. Even if I have to swim in a lake in Pakistan while David swims in the English Channel, it's still a powerful symbol.”
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