Kolkata: Sayani Das, a resident of Kalna in East Burdwan district of West Bengal, has become the first Indian female to complete a swim of the challenging North Channel. Sayani achieved the feat in 13 hours 22 minutes, braving the biting cold, terrible waves and challenges from jellyfish and other harmful denizens of the water.
Sayani swam 35 kilometres to emerge with flying colours through her strong grit, determination and never-give-up approach. Having successfully completed the swimming expedition, she has also become the first woman from Asia to have crossed five of the ‘Ocean Seven’. According to Britain’s timing, Sayani took to the waters at 7:45 am and completed her expedition at 03:00 IST (Indian Standard Time) on Saturday morning. The North Channel Swimming Association has shared Sayani’s glorious feat on its social media handle, congratulating her. The North Channel, located between Northern Ireland and Scotland, is the coldest of the channels. Das, in April, had swum across the challenging Cook Strait Channel in New Zealand and had been gearing up for crossing the North Channel since then. Sayani is hopeful of overcoming the challenge of the Tsugaru Strait and the Strait of Gibraltar in the days to come and achieving the crown of crossing all the channels under the ‘Ocean Seven’.