Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation - Congratulations to Chloe McCardel for swim number 44

13 Oct 2021Congratulations to Chloe McCardel for swim number 44

Many congratulations from everyone at the CS&PF to Chloe McCardel on her 44th English Channel Swim

On Wednesday 13th October 2021 Chloe swam the English Channel for the 44th time. She has now swum the Englsih Channel solo more times than anyone else. This is a remarkable feat given that her first Channel swim was in 2009, meaning she has accomplished this in 13 seasons. One has to wonder how many more she will do.

This is a great time to reflect on all the greats that feature in the rich sport of Channel Swimming, and nice to see Chloe amongst them.

First 1-way Channel Swim

1875 - Captain Matthew Webb became the first to swim the English Channel in a time of 21 hours 45 minutes

First Female Channel Swimmer

1926 - Gertrude Ederle swam the Channel in 14 hours and 34 minutes when she was only 19 years old

First 2-way Channel Swim

1961 - Antonio Abertondo took 43 hours and 10 minutes to swim to France and back.

First Female 2-way Channel Swim

1977 - Cynthia Nicholas swam the Channel 2-ways in blisteringly fast time of 19 hours 55 minutes

First 3-way Channel Swim

1981 - John Erikson took 38 hours and 27 minutes to swim the English Channel 3-ways

Youngest Channel Swim

1988 - Thomas Gregory swam the Channel when he was 11 years and 11 months old

First Female 3-way Channel Swim

1990 - Alison Streeter was the first female to swim the English Channel, taking 34 hours 40 minutes

Most Channel Swims by a man

2006 - Kevin Murphy swam the Channel for the 34th time

Slowest Channel Swim

2010 - Jackie Cobell took 28 hours 44 minutes to swim the Channel

Fastest Solo Channel Swim

2012 - Trent Grimsey swam the Channel in 6 hours 55 minutes

Oldest Channel Swim

2014 - Otto Thaning swam the Channel when he was 73 years and 4 months old

Longest Channel Swimming Career

2016 - Sally Minty-Gravett swam the Channel for the 7th time, resulting in the longest Channel swimming career of 41 years between her first (1975) and most recent.