Eric Blakeley (51) completed the 12 nautical-mile route from Tarifa Island at the southernmost tip of Spain to Isla Perejil on Morocco’s north coast in six hours and 51 minutes.
He is thought to be the first Jerseyman to complete the feat and is believed to have undertaken the challenge the earliest in the season ever recorded – most swimmers typically wait until later in the year when the temperatures are higher and the sea is calmer.
Fewer than 500 swimmers are thought to have successfully crossed the strait and Greek Georgios Charcharis holds the current speed record of 2 hr 16 min.
