Benoit Lecomte

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Benoit Lecomte (born: 1967 in France) was the first man to swim across the Atlantic Ocean.

The feat, performed in 1998, took him 72 days, with 6-8 hours spent swimming each day in sessions of about two hours length. He was accompanied by associates in a boat, where he could rest and eat between each swimming period. The swim extended from Hyannis, Massachusetts to Quiberon, France. He stopped for 1 week in Azores, a tiny island far off the coast of Spain. He achieved the goal in 72 days, and took lots of practice to get across. He had many fans once he reached land.

[edit] References

• Swimming Around The World. http://www.didyouknow.cd/aroundtheworld/swimming.htm. Retrieved 1 Aug 2004.
• Additional background information