On August 17th, the Red Sea Orcas with Dr. Mostafa Said Zaki of Egypt, Christophe Lambrecht of Belgium, Hayley Reid of Australia, and Fatima El Feky of Egypt.crossed the English Channel from England to France in 11 hours 20 minutes.

Mostafa → Christophe → Hayley → Fatima

Dr. Said was the first swimmer in th water, starting at 2:30 am when he entered the Channel in complete darkness with Lewis Pugh serving as the observer. He recalled, “The English Channel had been a dream of mine for many years, so becoming the first swimmer to enter the water for our relay and eventually reaching France together was very special.”

Everyone, as expected, had their own special reasons and goals to participate in their first English Channel relay. Haley had a very personal meaning through the Alexa Trust, following her family’s own experience with premature twins and the NICU.

Dr Said said, “I think what made the Red Sea Orcas special was how different the four swimmers were. We came from Egypt, Belgium and Australia, with backgrounds ranging from water polo and masters swimming to triathlon and marathon swimming. We came together for one crossing. The Channel then did what it always does — weather, tides and uncertainty dictated the schedule. Our opportunity came quickly, and we had to be ready to take it.

11 hours and 20 minutes later, we had crossed from England to France. The experience has also strengthened my ambition to continue towards a long-term goal of pursuing the Oceans Seven.

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