Sydney-born social worker Melissa (Mel) Jarman and her crew of two other women are taking on the World’s Toughest Row across the Atlantic Ocean, rowing 3000 miles non-stop and unsupported.
The team, called Row with the Flow, began their journey on 14 December, 2025 from La Gomera in Spain and are rowing to Antigua over the course of 2 months. They’ve currently got just over 1,000 miles left to go.
Alongside Jarman, the two other women crew members include Clare O’Reilly and Rosie Tong, both from Great Britain. They’re one of about 44 other teams competing in the extreme endurance race, with O’Reilly telling the BBC they’re making great time and currently 17th overall, as well as second in the women’s class.
Beyond their aim to achieve such a remarkable feat, the women are taking on this challenge to raise money for two incredible charities: the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust and Ocean Generation.
The Dame Kelly Holmes Trust supports the health and wellbeing of young people across the UK through world class athlete mentorship networks. Meanwhile, Ocean Generation supports young people through engaging ocean science education programmes, aimed at empowering them to take action to support an ocean positive future.
Female representation in extreme endurance challenges
While Jarman is originally from Australia, she had been living in London the last few years, where she met O’Reilly and Tong in Richmond.
Having held a lifetime love of rowing, the idea for rowing across the Atlantic felt like a calling to Jarman, and she says that when it came to “choosing the right crew for this epic journey”, O’Reilly and Tong were the perfect fit.
“These two strong, humble women are the perfect companions for this journey. I couldn’t ask for a better team to share this once-in-a-lifetime experience with,” Jarman shared, noting that part of her ‘why’ for taking on this event is to “normalise female representation in these incredible challenges”.
“To fuel our drive, we’re supporting two incredible charities, whose causes motivate us every day to push ourselves harder, knowing that every stroke brings us closer to the finish line and a greater purpose,” said Jarman. “This journey is about so much more than just rowing—it’s about strength, unity, and making a difference.”