22 Sep 2013Sylvain Estadieu swims the Channel Butterfly
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An awesome swim from Sylvain Estadieu in swimming the Englsh Channel butterfly
It took Sylvain 16 hours and 42 minutes to complete a swim of the English Channel using just butterfly. Every single stroke was judged to be proper ASA approved butterfly, which is a phenomenal achievement
See his track by clicking here.
Donal Buckley writes a good account of the swim:
On Monday 23 September 2013, Sylvain Estadieu, a 27-year old Frenchman from Strasbourg, became the first ever man to swim the English Channel using butterfly stroke.
Sylvain left Shakespeare Beach, outside Dover Harbour, at 09:47am on Sunday morning just after low tide. The pilot was Mike Oram of the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation, pilot for 2012's English Channel record swim by Trent Grimsey, with co-pilot James Willi, and CS&PF senior Observers, Mike Ball and Tanya Harding.
The morning was humid and cloudy with a moderate sea surface ruffled by a light breeze. Sylvain's butterfly is a highly economical open water stroke honed by many years and metres of training, with a cadence of twenty-four to twenty-eight strokes per minute.
Sweeping out of Dover on an ebbing tide, Sylvain first went south-west before entering the westerly shipping lane. Conditions changed throughout the day; the early breeze dropping to very light in the afternoon, smoothing the Channel water as Sylvain butterflew toward the eastern shipping lane. He struggled for a few hours with occasional sickness causing Mike Oram and crew of two-way Channel swimmer Lisa Cummins and Channel Soloists Donal Buckley and Zoe Sadler to adapt his feeds, “on the fly”.
The overcast sky led to an early deep night around 7 pm as the smooth surface once again roughened. Maintaining a smooth stroke, Sylvain battled a chop that he couldn't see coming.
Ebullient with an ineffable and almost stereotypical Gallic charm Sylvain happily scoffed brioche and pain-au-chocolat as he took the long track diagonally south-east down the shipping lane. As he finally entered French inshore waters, the clouds over La Manche, as the English Channel is known in France, loosened enough to finally allow a partial moon illumine the surface. The water calmed and became visible, as if to welcome the Flying Frenchman home.
The course plotted expertly and deliberately by pilot Mike Oram was designed to put Sylvain on land at the cliffs below Cap Petit Blanc. At 2.29 am Sylvain entirely cleared the water by climbing a low ledge on the cliff. The klaxon on Gallivant whooped and split the quiet Channel night, and our faint cheers on the water belied our astonishment and admiration for the new hero.
Vive La France!
[ Photos courtesy of Donal Buckley ]
- 27 Feb 2025
2025 Notice of CS&PF AGM & Motions
Notice of CS&PF AGMFor the year ended 31st December 2024To be held atThe Channel Suite, Leas Cliff HallThe Leas, FolkestoneCT20 2DZ1pm on the 15th March 2025 Officer and committee positions due for election in 2025 President: Mike Ball (nominated by the CS&PF committee)Vice-President: Michael Oram (nominated by the CS&PF committee) The ChairmanThe SecretaryTwo Committee member positionsNotices of Motion Motions:Motion 1) Proposed by Tony Kenyon; seconded by Eddie SpellingThe committee discussed the need to raise the swim administration fees to cover increasing costs. It was agreed to increase the administration fees by £30. A revised CS&PF rule is required to be ratified at the AGM.The following rule revision is proposed to reflect the increased administration fee.Revised RuleCS&PF fees:2026 Administration fees payable with all swim applications. Administration fees cover the costs of running the CS&PF Office and general CS&PF expenses. Applications submitted to the CS&PF Office before the deadline of 30 April will be charged a discounted administration fee of:Solo - £200Relay £240Applications received by the CS&PF Office after 30 April will be deemed to have exceeded the time allowed for postage and will be charged a full fee of:Solo £225Relay £265Motion 2) Proposed by Kevin Murphy; seconded by Tony KenyonThis AGM requests the committee to:i) Institute honorariums for the offices of CS&PF Secretary and CS&PF Treasurer;ii) Consider at what level these honorariums should be set.Motion 3) Proposed by Tony Kenyon, seconded by Kevin MurphyReplace the existing Clause “8 Management paragraph B” of the published CS&PF rules. The current wording was found to be unclear by the committee.Proposed wording:B. President and Vice PresidentThe positions of ‘President’ and ‘Vice President’ shall be nominated by the elected members of the CS&PF Committee. Only the committee nomination for the roles shall be put before the next AGM for ratification.Either or both positions can remain vacant if the committee does not make a nomination, or if a nomination is not ratified by the membership at the next AGM.The Vice President is expected to work in conjunction with the President. When the President completes their term, the Vice President is familiar with the role to step up. A former President is not permitted to be nominated for a future role as Vice President. If ratified at the AGM the appointment of these positions is for three years from the date of ratification. If they are not ratified, the committee will reconsider their nominations at the next committee meeting.The ‘President’ and the ‘Vice President’ shall be considered full members of the CS&PF Committee. They will receive notice and be invited to each committee meeting and be counted in the quorum with full voting rights.The maximum term for both of these positions is two consecutive appointments. Once this maximum term has been reached the incumbent must step aside from that role for at least three years, preferably six (equivalent to two consecutive terms). Eligibility to be considered for subsequent nomination for either role after the maximum term has been reached is at the discretion of the elected members of the CS&PF Committee.At the discretion of the elected members of the CS&PF Committee a retiring President may be given the honorary title of ‘President Emeritus’. This title is used to denote perpetual status of individuals who made significant contributions to the CS&PF.Motion 4) Proposed by Cliff Golding, seconded by Mike BallProposed amendments in red Assessment swims - (solos)All swimmers taking part in a solo swim must complete a self assessment swim of at least 6 hours in open water at a temperature of no more than 61F/16C. Such a swim should be carried out either as a training swim or as an organised event which the committee considers (in its discretion) to be a suitable alternative. In either case, the assessment swim should take place no more than 18 calendar months prior to the 1st June in the year of the application. Winter Swim Assessments. If a swim is registered to take place between 1 November and 30 April, the qualifying temperature for an assessment swim will be 12c or less, or as defined by the pilot.Assessment swims - (relays)All swimmers taking part in a relay swim must complete a self assessment swim of at least 1.5 hours then leave the water for a minimum of 1 hour and a maximum of 1.5 hours at a temperature of no more than 61°F / 16°C. They must then return to the water and swim for 1 more hour in open water also at a temperature of no more than 61°F / 16°C. These two swims should be carried out either as a training swim or as an organised event which the committee considers (in its discretion) to be a suitable alternative. In either case, the assessment swims should take place no more than 18 calendar months prior to the 1st June in the Year of application. If a relay swimmer carries out a training swim, or takes part in an event lasting 4 hours or more at a temperature of no more than 61°F / 61°C, the Committee will consider that a suitable assessment swim for a Channel relay swim.Winter Swim Assessments. If a swim is registered to take place between 1 November and 30 April, the qualifying temperature for an assessment swim will be 12c or less, or as defined by the pilot.Every application for a solo or relay swimmer must complete a Swim Assessment Form available for download from the CS&PF web site and submit this together with supporting proof/ratification of the self-assessment swim or (if an organised event wherein satisfactory participation is a matter of public online record) the website address at which such proof is evident. Voting will be by paper ballot for any contested positions or motions. Read more
Sandettie Lightship Observations
8pm, 23rd February 2025
Water: 46.4 °F (8 °C)
Air: 52.5 °F (11.4 °C)
Wind Speed: 29.9 kn (55.4 km/h)
Wind Direction: SSW (200°)
The CS&PF President, Mike Ball and all the committee are deeply saddened by the passing of Ady Brown.… https://t.co/E17pLxZwgw
2 years ago