Steve Leitch is among the 109 people who have crossed the Moloka’i Channel – and among the fastest with his 12 hours 54 minute crossing in April 2023.
There have been only 7 people since the first crossing in 1961 who have swum faster than 13 hours across the wild 45 km stretch in the middle of the Pacific Ocean between the islands of Moloka’i and O’ahu.
- Attila Mányoki in 12 hours 2 minutes in 2015
- Penny Palfrey in 12 hours 7 minutes in 2011
- Darren Miller in 12 hours 12 minutes in 2011
- Jorge Ivan Agudelo in 12 hours 12 minutes in 2023
- Robert Woodhouse in 12 hours 15 minutes in 2023
- Chris Palfrey in 12 hours 53 minutes in 2010
- Steve Leitch in 12 hours 54 minutes in 2023
But Leitch added a heavy additional responsibility and pressure to his crossing – he produced and starred in Beyond The Shoreline: The Channel of Bones, along with his wife Kelly.
This May at the Cannes World Film Festival, the 1 hour 28 minute film was nominated as the Best Documentary Feature. Leitch wrote, “We are humbled and honored to participate with so many talented filmmakers and stories on a worldwide stage.”
Herschel Zahnd wrote and directed the film about Leitch’s journey to and across one of the most beautiful and dangerous ocean swims locations in the world. He captured how Leitch was able to overcome challenges of addiction, loss, and crisis of faith to use his gifts to swim and serve others.
For more information or to purchase the film, visit beyondtheshoreline.org.
Moloka’i Channel Swimmers
109 men, women and teenagers have successfully crossed the channel, as certified by the Hawaiian Channel Swimming Association:
- William K. (Opelu) Pai, Hawaii, 1939 (uncertified crossing, rowed out to sea off Molokai to begin crossing*)
- Keo Nakama, USA (40), 1961
- Harry Huffaker, USA (27), 1967
- Harry Huffaker, USA (32), 1972 (first from Oahu to Molokai)
- Jonathan Ezer, USA (18), 1974
- Ian Emberson, South Africa (28), 1979
- Michael Miller, USA (25), 1979
- Robin Isayama, USA (26), 1994 (first woman)
- Forrest Nelson, USA (40), 2006 Oahu to Molokai)
- Bill Goding, USA (53), 2006
- Forrest Nelson, USA (41), 2006
- Linda Kaiser, USA (57), 2007
- Kelly Gleason, USA (32), 2007
- Mike Spalding, USA (60), 2007
- Mackenzie Miller, USA (19), 2009
- Chris Palfrey, Australia (52), 2010
- Samantha Simon, USA, 2011
- Tina Neill, USA, 2011
- Forrest Nelson, USA, 2011
- Anna-Carin Nordin, Sweden, 2011
- Michelle Macy, USA, 2011
- Darren Miller, USA (28), 2011
- Penny Palfrey, Australia (49), 2011
- Stephen Redmond, Ireland, 2012
- Adam Walker, Great Britain, 2012
- Michael Ventre, Botswana, 2012
- Oliver Wilkinson, Australia, 2012
- Kathleen Wilson, USA, 2012
- Kimberly Chambers, New Zealand, 2012
- Beth French, Great Britain, 2012
- Leahi Camacho, USA (17), 2013
- Katie Benoit, Germany, 2013
- Yesenia Cabrera Fuegos, Guatemala (41), 2014
- Victoria Rian, USA, 2014
- Jim Barber, USA (54), 2014
- Cameron Keith, Australia (15), 2014
- Rohan Dattatrey More, India, 2014
- André Wiersig, Germany, 2015
- Mányoki Attila, Hungary, 2015
- Elizabeth Fry, USA (56), 2016
- Marcella MacDonald, DPM, USA, 2016
- Ion Lazarenco Tiron, Moldavia, 2016
- Jorge Crivilles Villanueva, Spain, 2016
- Beth French, Great Britain, 2016
- Steve Junk, Australia, 2016
- Tom Hackett, MD, USA, 2016
- Adrian Sarchet, Great Britain, 2016
- Thomas Pembroke, Australia, 2016
- Antonio Argüelles Díaz-González, Mexico (56), 2016
- Cameron Bellamy, South Africa, 2017
- Steve Walker, USA, 2017
- Abhejali Bernardová, Czech Republic, 2017
- Pat Gallant-Charette (56), 2017
- Prabhat Raju Koli, India (18), 2017
- Nora Toledano Cadena, Mexico, 2017
- Mariel Hawley Dávila, Mexico, 2017
- Sarah Jane Ferguson, South Africa, 2017
- Toni Enderli, South Africa, 2017
- Stefan Reinke, USA, 2017
- Ryan Leong, USA, 2017
- Dean Summers, Australia, 2018
- Anna Strachan, Australia, 2018
- Mark Tan, USA, 2018
- Lynton Mortensen, Australia, 2018
- Jonathan Ratcliffe, Great Britain, 2018
- Dina Levačić, Croatia, 2018
- Joe Zemaitis, USA,2018
- John Zemaitis, USA, 2018
- Paul Eugen Dorin Georgescu, Romania, 2019
- Paul Feltoe, New Zealand, 2019
- Florin Tomos, Romania, 2019
- Pieter Christian Jongeneel Anderica, Spain, 2019
- Debbie Merwick, USA, 2020
- Steve Minaglia, MD, USA, 2020
- Sarah Thomas, USA, 2021
- Edie Markovich, USA (15), 2021
- Andrey Bozhko, Russia (34), 2021
- Bárbara Hernández Huerta, Chile, 2021
- Dmitry Petrov, Russia, 2021
- John Batchelder, USA 2021
- Sayani Das, India, 2022
- Lori King, USA, 2022
- Terri Dietz, USA, 2022
- Zach Margolis, USA, 2022
- Nathalie Pohl, Germany, 2022
- Herman van der Westhuizen, South Africa, 2022
- René Martínez Saenz, Mexico, 2022
- Jaime Lomelín Gavaldón, Mexico, 2022
- Daniel Vivero, Costa Rica, 2022
- Guy Moar, Australia, 2022
- Mark Sowerby, Australia, 2022
- Marcia Cleveland, USA, 2022
- Suwei Chen, China, 2022
- Andy Walberer, USA, 2023
- Maya Merhige, USA (15), 2023
- Steve Leitch, USA, 2023
- Andy Donaldson, Scotland, 2023
- Gráinne Moss, Ireland, 2023
- Eduardo Collazos, Peru, 2023
- Ezequiel Becerril Zuñiga, Mexico, 2023
- Jorge Ivan Agudelo Vargas, Columbia, 2023
- Edward Lomicka, USA, 2023
- Alessandra Rossi Cima, Brazil, 2023
- Chris Allshouse, USA, 2023
- Lauren Lesyna, USA, 2023
- Rob Woodhouse, Australia, 2023
- Kieron Palframan, South Africa, 2023
- Karen Ennis, Great Britain, 2023
- Colby Dimsdale, USA, 2024
* According to Hawai’i Sports: History, Facts and Statistics and the account by Ray Tsuchiyama, Bill Pai was an Hawaiian fisherman who started his Molokai Channel crossing at Ilio Point and finished at the Blowhole near Sandy Beach on O’ahu in 18 hours 56 minutes. However, he was rowed 50 yards from shore to start his swim off Molokai. Because the Hawaiian Channel Swimming Association (established 1984) rules require that swimmers must complete certified swims from shore to shore, Keo Nakama’s 1961 crossing from Moloka’i Island to O’ahu is recognized as the first official crossing the Moloka’i Channel.
© 2024 Daily News of Open Water Swimming
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