Who is Siddhartha Aggarwal, the oldest Indian to swim across the English Channel solo?
49-year-old Bengaluru resident Siddhartha Agarwal swam his way to a whole new record recently. He became the oldest Indian to swim across the English Channel solo. He covered a distance of 42 kilometres over a span of 15 hours and six minutes and went on to achieve the feat.
Imagine taking on the daring challenge of swimming across the choppy cold waters of the English Channel and making your own mark in the world in the process. 49-year-old Bengaluru resident Siddhartha Agarwal sure made it look easy. He swam his way to a whole new record recently: he has become the oldest Indian to swim across the English Channel solo. He covered a distance of 42 kilometres over a span of 15 hours and six minutes and went on to achieve the feat. Here's all you need to know about him.
Who is Siddhartha Aggarwal, the oldest Indian to swim across the English Channel solo?
Going in, Agarwal--now officially the oldest Indian swimmer to have traversed the icy cool waters of the English Channel solo--didn't imagine breaking any sort of record. His only goal when he first started training in 2018 as part of an eight-member relay team was to one day simply make it to the other side.
But he achieved the commendable feat on August 29 after swimming across 42 kilometres, taking 15 hours and six minutes in total. Interestingly, swimming the Channel is often compared to climbing Everest. According to Swimming World Magazine, there are more people who have climbed Mount Everest than there are those who have crossed the Channel, almost thrice as much.
There's a reason why the Channel is often referred to as 'dangerous' to traverse and a 'tough swim' for even the most experienced swimmers. The English Channel has strong currents and unpredictable weather; the water temperature itself is said to be under 16¡ã Celcius. If you put that in perspective, Agarwal's latest record is no ordinary feat.
Agarwal told Swim Life: "Until I actually completed the swim, I never believed that I could actually do this. It took me a while for it to sink in. What worked for me was that I trusted my coach, I believed in the process and just focused on what I needed to do that week and that month."
"I was never a swimmer; at best I would splash around in the pool at my school as a kid. To inculcate the discipline and clock those regular hours in the pool despite my role as an entrepreneur in real estate and family commitments was the real challenge that excited me," he shared.
Credit: Swimming World Magazine | A shot of the English Channel from space
The Channel...
For those who don't know, the English Channel (or simply the Channel) is the stretch of the Atlantic Ocean that lies between Southern England and northern France. It is 560 kilometres long and 240 kilometres at its widest.
According to World Atlas, with 20% of global maritime trade taking place in the Channel, it is today the world's busiest shipping route.
Lead image credit: Swim Life via ANI
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