Reference is made to the article " 'Big Swim' remembered" (The Sunday Times, July 23).

Regretfully, we would like to point out some misinformation in the article. Although we do acknowledge that Mr Arthur Rizzo is a sporting hero in his own right, we would like to set the record straight once and for all, since there exists a persisting misconception in connection with Mr Rizzo's swimming endeavours.

Your correspondent stated that Mr Rizzo was "the first Maltese swimmer to conquer the English Channel". The official records the club has from the Channel Swimming Association, since Mathew Webb's first crossing in 1875, attributes this honour to Mr Nicky Farrugia in 1989.

On that particular day he was the only one who managed to swim the distance from France to England in 12 hours 40 minutes. We would welcome any records that show otherwise. I am forwarding true copies of the original documents for your perusal.

Another gross misinterpretation is the claim that another Mr Rizzo was the first man to swim from Malta to Sicily in 1925. He certainly tried, but never reached Maltese shores. Again the only person to claim such a unique feat is Nicky Farrugia way back in 1985, clocking 30 hours 17 minutes on touching Qbajjar in Gozo. This, and nobody else's, is recognised by the relative international federation as a world first.

This is not the first time that Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club, as a club Nicky Farrugia currently hails from, had to issue statements to correct these unfair interpretations of the facts.

In the true spirit of fair play, we expect that all and sundry refrain from making such claims, as in sports records are certainly not subject to interpretation. Both Nicky Farrugia and the club will consider taking the necessary action against any person who disregards these records without forwarding the relative official documents to substantiate a claim.

Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club is the only local club that organises open sea swimming events in Malta.