Eight months of training and hard work definitely paid off well for Albany Creek Swim Club pride Brianna Thompson as she took on and conquered the English Channel last September.
Escorted by a boat named Viking Princess, which is piloted by Ray and Reg Brickell, Brianna tackled the treacherous waters of the English Channel for a gruelling 11 hours and 52 minutes.
“I never expected to swim it this year (I feel like I’ve said that a lot) and now I can’t believe I swam it in 11 hours and 52 minutes.The journey hasn’t been the easiest but I’ve gotten to meet some truly amazing people some who have helped me so much,” Brianna said on her official English Channel Swim Facebook page.
Video credit: Brianna’s English Channel Swim 2018/Facebook
Video credit: Brianna’s English Channel Swim 2018/Facebook
Brianna’s official track across the Channel
Video credit: Brianna’s English Channel Swim 2018/Facebook
It was an amazing feat indeed for the 16-year-old swimmer who crossed the 32-kilometre English Channel and reached France in less than 12 hours. Her quest started at Samphire Hoe at around 2:30 A.M. local time, battling tough conditions and the elements right at the start. Tim Denyer, who was coaching and encouraging her while onboard Viking Princess, described her swim as really fast considering the 21 km/h headwinds and 33 km/h gustiness that lasted for about 7 hours, at the start of her swim.
Video credit: Brianna’s English Channel Swim 2018/Facebook
Brianna said that she was happy and relieved; she had finally got to swim after waiting for three weeks. Whilst they expected the waters to be calm that day, the conditions were the exact opposite. Apart from the rough waters, she had to take painkillers to ease the arm and shoulder pains that she had been experiencing towards the final stages of her training.
She described the final stretch of her swim as the point where her arm got seriously hurting. She, however, continued pushing forward and swimming faster to make it to the shore.
Brianna, who attends school at Wavell State High School, completed her training under the guidance of Trent Grimsey—record holder of the English Channel Swim. Despite her academic workload, she saw to it that she finds time to train and hit a minimum of 75 kilometres each week.
You are truly admirable, Brianna.
