CALAIS, France, September 9. THIS has been a historic week for English Channel crossings, as a South African man has become the oldest person to swim across the famed waterway a few days after an Australian tried to hold that distinction.
On Saturday, Otto Thaning crossed the Channel in 12 hours and 52 minutes, and at age 73, became the oldest person to complete the crossing. Last month, Cyril Baldock completed the swim at 70 years and 9 months old to break Roger Allsopp’s three-year old record of 70 years and 4 months.
Thaning’s crossing came about 20 years after his last swim across the English Channel, according to The Daily News of Open Water Swimming. In 1994, he swam across the Channel in 10 hours, 29 minutes.
Thaning is a heart surgeon who lives in Cape Town and practiced medicine in the hospital where the first human-to-human heart transplant was performed.
Thaning’s swim came three days before Charlotte Samuels swam across the English Channel to become the youngest person to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming.
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Thaning’s swim took place on Friday.