The English Channel is a stretch of water that open water swimmers - both professional and amateur - have looked upon with eager eyes since 1875, when Captain Matthew Webb became the very first person to successfully swim the Channel unaided.
Since then, thousands more have accomplished this huge challenge, and the latest to join them is Launceston teenager Lowenna North. When we last spoke to Lowenna, she was preparing for the Eddystone Rock swim in July 2022, aged just 15. Two years on, Cornwall watched in awe as Lowenna became the youngest swimmer from Cornwall to complete the ultimate swimming challenge: the English Channel.
We caught up with Lowenna days after she returned home from the coast of France.
A dream
Lowenna has dreamt of swimming the Channel since she was 12 years old, when she first started open water swimming. A regular at the pool in Launceston Leisure Centre and other local pools like Bude Sea Pool, she has been training for the Channel swim for four years and, this year in particular, she has been focusing on back-to-back six-hour swims to prepare for the 21-mile distance.
After years of training, Lowenna finally got the call to say she would be able to attempt the challenge in the early hours of Saturday, 14th September. The race to get her to Dover was on, and Lowenna arrived with her dad James the day before she was set to step into the water.
The swim
At 5 o’clock on the Saturday, Lowenna stepped into the chilly waters of Shakespeare beach and set off on the challenge she’s dreamt of doing for five years. Launceston and the entire county watched with bated breath, cheering Lowenna on through her swim thanks to live updates on her Facebook page. In the evening, after 44km of swimming, Lowenna finally reached the shores of Sangatte beach in Calais, France. The challenge was over, and while her supporters at home celebrated, it was time for Lowenna to realise just how much she had achieved.
“The swim was 44km and took me 14 hours and 56 minutes,” she told Launceston Life. “I had been preparing and training for this swim for nearly four years, which consisted of 3 to 4 times in the pool a week, and then two open water swims at the weekend.
“I had a mixture of conditions on the day. The tides and winds were quite strong, however the weather was lovely. It was a bit choppy once we had got out of the marina in Dover, but I like swimming in the choppy conditions so this didn’t really bother me.”
The achievement
From a 12-year-old swimming hopeful to a fully accomplished English Channel swimmer at the age of 17, Lowenna has certainly come a long way.
“It feels amazing to have finally reached my goal,” she continued. “I felt relieved when I got onto the beach in France - all the training had paid off.
“It’s great to be home and it has been lovely to see everyone. All the support from Launceston has been amazing and much appreciated.”
There is no doubt that Lowenna is set to achieve even more in the years to come, and will perhaps inspire the next generation of swimmers and young sportspeople. Lowenna said: “I would say go for it! Nothing is stopping you if you’re prepared to put the work in.”
What’s next?
Now the English Channel swim has been ticked off her list, Lowenna already has some other swims she would like to work towards. She said: “I don't have anything booked at the minute, but I have got some swims I would like to complete. I would like to do the Manhattan Island swim, which is the 20 bridges around New York; I would like to complete all of the Bristol Channels one day, as well as The North Channel. It's my final year at college so that is my main focus for this year. Swimming socially is what I will be doing for the next year.”
She added: “A massive thank you for all of the support during training, as well as during the swim - it means so much.”
You can read all about Lowenna’s swim, plus other exciting challenges, over on The Ginger Swimmer Facebook page.
More about the English Channel swim
The first attempts
Just over 20 miles of water is what separates England from France and for those with an ambitious or competitive streak, it’s seen as an ultimate challenge. It’s thought the first attempt at swimming the Channel was in 1872, when J B Johnson reportedly entertained crowds for hours before entering the water to begin his swim. He was forced to abandon his efforts just over an hour into it, although little is known about his attempt and reasons for stopping.
The very first successful crossing was by sailor Captain Matthew Webb just three years later. He completed the swim in 21 hours and 45 minutes.
Since the first success in 1875, many other swimmers have followed in the footsteps (or swimming strokes) of Captain Webb.
Gertrude Ederle
American Gertrude Ederle (1905-2003) was the first woman to swim the English Channel. Born in New York to German parents, butcher Henry Ederle and Gertrude Anna Haberstroh, Gertrude first learnt to swim in the Shrewsbury River near the family’s home in New Jersey at the age of nine, overcoming her fear of water. As a young woman, she joined the Women’s Swimming Association (WSA), founded by Charlotte Epstein in 1917 to give women and girls the opportunity to swim competitively, and went on to learn the American crawl under Louis de Breda Handley, at the request of Charlotte Epstein.
Gertrude’s swimming career really kicked off when she beat 51 female swimmers - including a handful of Olympic medalists - in the International Women’s Long Distance Swimming Championship held at Manhattan Beach in August 1922, tackling choppy waters and bad weather to finish almost a minute ahead of the other swimmers. In 1924, she competed at the Paris Olympic Games, and in 1925 she made her first attempt at swimming the English Channel under coach Jabez Wolffe. Unfortunately, she was unable to finish. After many hours in the water, and with the weather worsening, Gertrude was pulled out.
Gertrude tried again in 1926, hiring accomplished Channel swimmer Thomas Burgess to train her ahead of the challenge. Setting off just after 7am on 6th August, Gertrude overcame rough seas and tumultuous conditions to reach Kingsdown Beach in 14 hours and 39 minutes - a new record.
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