Tom Gregory (swimmer)

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Tom Gregory
Personal information
Born (1976-10-09) 9 October 1976 (age 48)
Eltham, Greater London, Great Britain
Sport
Sport Swimming

Thomas Gregory (born 9 October 1976 [1] ) swam the English Channel in 1988 at the age of 11 years 333 days, and holds the record as the youngest person to have done so. [2] He made his swim on 6 September 1988. [3] The record cannot be broken because the Channel Swimming Association has since set an age limit of 16 years for officially recognised crossings. [4] The age limit was introduced on 26 November 2000. [5]

Sources differ as to his age at the date of the swim. Gregory's own book states that he was 11 years and 333 days old, [6] as does the 2025 book 150 Years of Swimming the Channel. [7] The Channel Swimming Association states that he was 11 years 330 days old. [2] His old school gives the figure of 11 years 336 days, [8] as does a BBC article. [9]

Gregory's coming-of-age story about being the youngest person to swim the Channel, A Boy in the Water (2018, Penguin: ISBN   9780241354124) was joint winner of the 2018 William Hill Sports Book of the Year. [10] It was BBC Radio 4's Book of the Week in August 2018. [11] He served in the Royal Anglian Regiment of the British Army. [12] [3]

References

  1. ↑ Gregory, Tom (30 August 2018). A Boy in the Water. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN   978-0-14-198876-4.Chapter 1 of Tom's book time-hops back to the start of his swimming career in 1984: "By the time of my eight birthday on 9th October, I was near the bottom of the all-important class 'plus' board".
  2. 1 2 "Thomas Gregory 1988". Channel Swimming Association. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  3. 1 2 Russell, Steve (3 September 2018). "When an 11-year-old could try to swim the English Channel; and triumph". Eastern Daily Press. Archived from the original on 23 December 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  4. ↑ "FAQs:What do I have to do to ensure swim is officially recognised?". Channel Swimming Association. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  5. ↑ "Channel Swimming Association Regulations". Channel Swimming Association. Retrieved 20 August 2025."The CSA resolved on the 26th November 2000 that Solo swimmers must be 16 years or older on the day the swim commences."
  6. ↑ Gregory, Tom (30 August 2018). A Boy in the Water. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN   978-0-14-198876-4.Searching within the book preview on Google Books produces no hits for "330" or "336" but three hits on "333" including "If I could do that ... I would hold a world record because at that moment I was eleven years and 333 days old".
  7. ↑ Goodbody, John (29 August 2025). 150 Years of Swimming the Channel: The Story of the World Famous Challenge. The Crowood Press. ISBN   978-0-7198-4521-5. Gregory achieved his ambition at the age of 11 years and 333 days
  8. ↑ "Old Colfeian Tom Gregory publishes book on swimming English Channel aged 11". Colfe's School. 6 September 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  9. ↑ Amos, Owen (2 February 2016). "How an 11-year-old came to swim the Channel". BBC News. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  10. ↑ Ingle, Sean (27 November 2018). "William Hill Sports Book of the Year prize shared for first time in 30 years". The Guardian . Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  11. ↑ "Book of the Week: A Boy in the Water". BBC. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  12. ↑ Geere, Verity (28 August 2018). "How I Swam The Channel Aged 11; And How It Shaped My Military Life". Story (Interview). No. 1. BFBS. Forces Network. Retrieved 23 December 2018.


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