Swimming
The moment swimmer Ross Edgley touched land after 157 days at sea
Completing a task that many deemed impossible, the British extreme athlete became the very first person to swim around mainland Great Britain.
The snapshot:
Setting off from Margate in south-east England on June 1 of 2018 and swimming an average of 12 hours a day, Ross Edgley overcame swarms of jellyfish, freezing temperatures and busy shipping lanes as he swam around the entirety of mainland Great Britain.
After covering an incredible 2,283km, on November 4 he finally clambered back ashore on Margate beach as he touched land for the very first time in 157 days.
Ross Edgley completes the Great British Swim
© Red Bull Content Pool
The athlete:
No stranger to extreme challenges, Edgley had climbed the height of Mount Everest on a rope, swam more than 100km across the Caribbean Sea pulling a 45kg tree, ran 1,000 miles (1,609km) barefoot while carrying a 50kg backpack and completed a marathon while pulling a 1,400kg car.
But it was after swimming for 48 hours straight at the Royal Marines training centre (covering 126km) that the idea of circumnavigating Great Britain came into existence.
Edgley said: “One of the Marines mentioned the idea of swimming around the entirety of Britain – something that’s never been done before – and I thought, 'why not?'"
The struggle:
Only sleeping on his support boat and spending hour after hour in the water, Edgley suffered severe chaffing on his neck and even noticed pieces of his tongue falling off due to the build-up of salt water in his mouth.
The Briton also had to contend with strong tides, jellyfish stings to the face, swimming with basking sharks in Scotland and consuming a staggering 10-15,000 calories a day.
10 min
Shock Encounter with a Shark – Ross Edgley's Great British Swim Ep14
The top of Scotland is gnarly. Its harsh waters have not only hampered Ross' output, but delivered him a giant shark. Now he's preying the area's famous Orca isn't waiting for him around the corner.
My body’s going to break down at sea, I know that, but I must be mentally ready
The record-breaker:
Having overcome all of the challenges presented at sea, when Edgley finally arrived back at Margate he did so as the only person to ever swim around mainland Great Britain and as the holder of four world records.
But more than the records, Edgley hoped that by completing the seemingly impossible, he would inspire people to push themselves past their limitations.
He said: "So many people told me it couldn't be done – it's impossible – and I was like, 'I agree with you, in theory it looks like it can't be done but I'm going to try'. Having done it now, what would be amazing is to see people shift their own personal barometer on what they think is possible."
