Two young Congleton swimmers are celebrating after helping Beech Hall School make one of the youngest English Channel relay crossings.
Thirteen-year-old Ruby Tkaczyk and 12-year-old Ben Oliver, both from Congleton, were part of Beech Hall School’s youngest English Channel Relay team.
Beginning before sunrise on Sunday, 6th September, Ruby entered the water first from England’s South East coast to launch the attempt.
Together with their four teammates, the swimmers battled powerful tides and not-so-warm waters before reaching the French coast in 13 hours and 16 minutes.
With a combined age of just 75, the team became one of the youngest groups to complete the crossing, extending Beech Hall’s reputation as the world’s most successful junior English Channel relay programme.
According to the official Channel Swimming Association Regulations, all relay participants must be at least 12 years old on the day the swim commences.
This means a standard six-person team cannot mathematically drop much lower than a combined age of 72 years.
The Bristol English Channel Swimmers completed the swim with an average age of 12 years and 118 days (three months and 28 days), compared to Beech Hall’s 12 years and six months.
The youngest swimmer to cross was Thomas Gregory, at 11 years and 336 days, on 6th September 1988.
The youngest girl is Samantha Druce, 12 years and 118 days, in 1983.
The Beech Hall achievement followed a year of dedication to an intensive training programme, including cold-water plunges, land-based conditioning and countless early-morning and late-night swims in both open water and Beech Hall’s outdoor pool.
Ruby also became Beech Hall School’s youngest six-hour swimmers, completing one of the sport’s toughest open-water endurance challenges in Dover Harbour.
Ruby joined three fellow Beech Hall swimmers in taking on back-to-back six-hour swims – a test of stamina, determination and mental resilience.
Since launching its annual English Channel programme in 2021, Beech Hall School has inspired young people to discover the transformative power of open water swimming while raising funds for Mencap.
The programme has already generated more than £150,000 for the charity, with the school aiming to raise a further £30,000 this year.
James Allen, headmaster at Beech Hall School, said: “The remarkable thing about our swimmers is that they’re not elite athletes – they’re young people who have achieved extraordinary things through resilience, courage and an incredible work ethic.
“Watching them discover what they’re capable of is truly inspiring.
“The confidence and resilience they gain doesn’t just change how they swim, it has a hugely positive impact on learning in the classroom too, and that’s what is so magical about it.
“We are immensely proud of every single one of them.”
The first person to swim the Channel was famously Matthew Webb, in August 1875 and in a time of 21 hours, 45 minutes.
The fastest crossing is now Trent Grimsey, from Australia, who crossed in six hours and 55 minutes in 2012.
Yvetta Hlavacova, from the Czech Republic, holds the women’s record at seven hours, 25 minutes and 15 seconds, in 2006.
The fastest relay swim was from the US national swim team, six hours and 52 minutes in 1990.
