The Oxford Varsity Cross-Channel Relay Team
Written by Lauren Burton
Six intrepid swimmers are preparing to compete in the 11th Biennial Cross-Channel Varsity Relay Swim being held later this month. The Cross-Channel Relay was founded in 1998 by Nick Thomas and Martin Davies, and every other year since, swimmers have been able to test their limits in this challenging event swimming from England to France.
Swimming the English Channel is arguably one of the most iconic achievements in open water swimming and is one of three events included in the prestigious “Triple Crown” of open water, alongside the Catalina Island Swim and the Manhattan Island Swim. The English Channel crossing has such a reputation because of the cold water (expected to be around 15°C; most ‘cold’ swimming pool are around 27°C!), jellyfish, unpredictable conditions, and the fact that it is the busiest shipping lane in the world.
Under the watchful eye of the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation (CS&PF), members of the team are only permitted to wear one – sleeveless and legless – swimming costume, one swim cap and a pair of goggles whilst swimming: no wetsuits are allowed! Each swimmer will swim for an hour before passing the metaphorical baton onto the next swimmer, rotating around until they reach France. The swim is expected to take between 8-9 hours, meaning that some of the team will do two stints in the cold.
The team is headed up by Open Water Captain, Victoria Cox, who completed a solo crossing of the English Channel last summer. Her solo crossing, alongside the successful completion of the Catalina Island Swim and the Manhattan Island Swim, saw her become the seventh person in history to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming in one season.
Introducing the team:
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Name: Victoria Cox
Degree: MPhil in Evidence Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation Bio: Victoria is a medical doctor from Australia and is the Captain of the Open Water Swimming Team at Oxford University. She achieved a Full Blue in Swimming and broke two Oxford University Swimming Club (OUSC) Records during the 2016/2017 season. In 2017 she became the seventh person in the world to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming in one season: the Catalina Channel, the English Channel and the 20 Bridges Manhattan Island Swim.
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Name: Lauren Burton
Degree: BA in Geography Bio: Lauren is a second year Geography student originally from Norfolk. She is the current Women’s Captain of OUSC has achieved two Full Blues in her time at Oxford. She has swum competitively since the age of nine, including a number of Regional Open Water Championships. |
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Name: Lara Reed Degree: Medicine Bio: Lara is a second year medical student. She has swum competitively since the age of nine and has represented OUSC during her time at Oxford, achieving a full blue. She has more recently become involved in open water swimming, participating in open water events such as the Henley classic swim last June.
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Name: George Stannard
Degree: Medicine Bio: George is a 4th year medical student from Norwich. A member of OUSC for three years, he achieved three full Blues in that time, and swam the first and seventh legs of the 2016 Oxford-Cambridge Channel Relay (in which Oxford beat Cambridge by a comfortable 36 minutes). This July he is attempting to carry out a solo Channel crossing.
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Name: Patrick Canipet
Degree: MSc in Mathematical Modelling and Scientific Computing Bio: Patrick is a masters student from France and is a member of the Triathlon Club at Oxford University. He competed at the Varsity Triathlon in 2018. Before that, he was a competitive swimmer in France and was the captain of his alma mater swimming team. |
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Name: Ben Eastman
Degree: MPhil International Relations Bio: Ben is a first year masters student from London. He achieved a full blue in swimming for Oxford University Swimming Club in 2017-18, swimming blues times in two events. He previously was Men’s Captain of London University Swimming Team. |
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Name: Victoria (Tori) Lackey
Degree: MTh in Applied Theology Bio: Victoria (Tori) is a theologian from South Florida, USA, and is the 2018/19 Oxford University Swimming Club Secretary. In addition to this post, Tori also serves as the Graduate Theological Society President and on the Graduate Joint Consultative Committee. After 7 years out of the pool, Tori re-entered the water in 2017 and competed with the OUSC Blues Team in 2018 at Varsity, swimming with personal best times. She has completed several open water swims and is looking forward to supporting her team as a reserve swimmer for the Channel Relay. |
The team’s tide for the crossing begins on the 28th June 2018 and they will commence the swim after this time, weather permitting. You can follow their progress throughout the swim across the English Channel on the live tracker: https://track.rs/OxfordUniversity
The team have a live fundraising page to help cover the significant cost of the event. If you feel you are able to donate, whatever size donation, the team would be most appreciative! https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/oxford-university-varsity-cross-channel-relay-swim
Their swim progress can also be followed on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/OxfordOpenWater/), on Twitter (@OxfordOpenWater) and Instagram (@OxfordOpenWater).