Dutch princess swims Amsterdam canals for charity

Dutch princess Maxima waves after swimming through an Amsterdam canal on Sept, 9, 2012, as she takes part in the Amsterdam City Swim, a charity event.

/ Getty

(CBS News) Dutch Crown Princess Maxima swam the Amsterdam canals Sunday to raise money for charity.

Wearing a red and black swimsuit, goggles and a bright orange swim cap, the 41-year-old Argentina-born princess took about 50 minutes to make the 2-kilometer swim, according to Hello! magazine.

She was cheered on by her husband, Crown Prince Willem Alexander, and their three daughters. The oldest, Princess Amalia, 8, gave her mother a kiss when she finally emerged from the water.

The princess was among 1,000 who made the Amsterdam City Swim to raise money for ALS, a debilitating nerve and muscle disease also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

It usually is illegal to swim in the canals, whose waters, though deemed safe, are best derscribed as murky.

Editor's Note: A typo in an earlier version of this story misstated the distance of the swim.

[TaraDutch]

http://www.ad.nl/ad/nl/1014/Bizar/article/detail/3314662/2012/09/11/Jubelend-CBS-News-Maxima-zwom-26-kilometer-in-50-minuten.dhtml

[TaraDutch]

Ehh, it was only 2 km, not 26

[ramonstruo]

Over 16 miles in 50 mins, I'm sure your fact checking dept agrees that that must be a new world record!