Jersey woman completes English Channel swim across six decades

Mrs Minty-Gravett said she swam before she learned to walk

A 65-year-old has become the first person to swim the English Channel across six different decades.

Sally Minty-Gravett, from Jersey, set off at 05:30 BST on Sunday and completed the 21 mile (34 km) swim from Dover to Calais in 15 hours and 30 minutes.

She made her first crossing in 1975, aged 18 and in 2016 became the oldest woman to swim to France and back.

She dedicated her latest swim to her late husband Charlie.

The fellow endurance swimmer died in 2020.

She said: "He'd always been my biggest supporter, Charlie, and he was always there when I did a swim, he was always there when I came home to talk about it, he was always sharing the glory and promoting me and supporting me.

"In January 2020, when I decided that this was going to be the last swim, the retirement swim, he said "I'll support you with whatever you decide, but you can always come out of retirement because the oldest lady who swam the channel was 71", and I'm 65 now."

Sally Minty-Gravett set off at 05:30 BST on Sunday, heading from Dover to Calais

Mrs Minty-Gravett was set to swim her final swim in 2020 and then 2021, but both were postponed due to her husband's health and weather complications.

With the water sport coming naturally to her, she said she swam before she could walk.

She said: "I'm one of those fortunate people that my parents were both swimmers... I was one of those babies that swam at seven or eight months before I walked so I've never known what it's like not to swim, I've been in the water all my life.

"It's exhilarating when you come out the water, even if its freezing cold and you've been in for five or 10 minutes, the tingle you get when you come out is lovely."

Sally Minty-Gravett and husband Charlie collected her MBE in 2016

Mrs Minty-Gravett received an MBE in 2016 for her services to swimming.

Messages of good luck were sent to her from famous names in the endurance swimming community.

Among them was Devon's Lewis Pugh, who finished the first swim under the Antarctic ice to highlight the impact of climate change in 2020.

The Jersey long-distance swimming club sent their support to Mrs Minty-Gravett from St Catherines Bay, Jersey

Even though Mrs Minty-Gravett said it was her retirement swim, she did not rule out another channel crossing.

"This is my retirement swim in memory of Charlie, and if in 10 years I'm in the right place and I'm in the right frame of mind and I'm still fit then maybe I'll consider another one," she said.

The challenge raised more than £21,000, which will be donated to the Jersey Lifeboat Association and Dementia Jersey.

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