Episode 4: Stephen Redmond

Stephen Redmond became the first person to swim the 7 Oceans which is deemed the ocean equivalent to the prestigious 7 Summits. A feat so tough, it is reserved for only the world’s toughest athletes.

Stephen was faced with severe sea sickness, vertigo, box jellyfish and sharks as he swam his way into the record books.

He swam the English Channel between England and France in August 2009, followed by the North Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland a year later. In May 2011 he swam the Gibraltar Strait between Spain and Morocco and then in October of that year he swam the Catalina Channel off California. He followed it up the following February with a swim of the Molokai Channel in Hawaii and then the Cook Strait between the north and south islands of New Zealand the same month. He then completed the challenge with a 20km swim of the Tsugaru Strait in Japan.

Here Redmond tells us exactly why his endeavours have seen him inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame.