Lowenna completes epic swim across the English Channel

Fuelled by jelly babies and peaches, Lowenna, from Launceston, completed the 44km swim from Dover to Sangatte on the French coast in an incredible 14 hours and 56 minutes - an achievement equivalent to running four marathons back-to-back!

At the age of 15, Lowenna had already become the youngest person to complete the 14-mile (22.5km) swim from the Eddystone Lighthouse to Plymouth Hoe. Now, she has realised her long-held dream of swimming the English Channel, a goal she has been training towards for the last four years.

Reflecting on her achievement, Lowenna shared: “It was definitely an amazing day. It felt great to finally get across to France after four years of long, hard training! The weather was great which was lovely!”

Lowenna, who also attends Callywith’s High Performance Academy (HPA), said: “The academy has really helped with my strength and conditioning and land training. High Performance Academy Coach Julian has helped me keep me in the best condition whilst suffering with bicep tendonitis throughout my training, advising me on the best exercises to do that would benefit me without causing further distress to my injury. Between Julian and my Physio my shoulder was healed ready to swim.”

HPA Coach Julian expressed his pride, saying: “We are incredibly proud of Lowenna. She’s a much-valued member of the High Performance Academy, always smiling and bringing great energy to everything she does.”

Looking ahead to future challenges, Lowenna has set her sights on even bigger goals. She shared: “The Manhattan Island swim, which involves swimming under 20 bridges around New York, is definitely on my list, as well as the Bristol Channel and the North Channel!”