Man makes history by swimming length of the British Isles

A man made history on Monday 11 November by becoming the first person to swim the entire length of the British Isles.

Despite training for only three months, Sean Conway, 32, has completed his attempt to swim from Land's End to John O'Groats.

He had originally hoped to reach John O'Groats in just two months rather than the four it took. However, the Speedo-sponsored endurance athlete was only three miles into the epic journey when he realised he suffered from sea sickness.

Conway, from Cheltenham, left west Cornwall on 30 June bound for the far north of the Scottish mainland. The amateur adventurer broke into tears as he swam into John O'Groats Harbour at the end of his 1,000 mile journey.

At the peak of the swim, Conway was swimming up to 16 miles per day. He swam for 90 of the 136 days, whilst the remaining time was spent out of the water due to bad weather.

Many people have walked and cycled between the two points, but no one has swum the distance before, which follows a course along England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

Conway told Rex Features: "I have done some big challenges in my time, but swimming from Lands End to John O'Groats is certainly up there. It has been an epic battle of endurance, during which time I've gone through a range of emotions.

"Ultimately I have come out on top, getting Speedo fit along the way, and have become the first person to complete this 1,000 mile swim. With physical inactivity becoming a growing concern I would encourage everyone to swim; no matter what age you are, or your level of swim ability."

Along the way, Sean and his Swimming Britain with Speedo team have encountered wildlife from seals to swarms of jellyfish (the reason he cites for growing his 'ridiculous beard'), and have had to deal with avoiding ferries to extreme storms.

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