Channel Swimmer, Climate Action Advocate Sarah Philpott Joins EcoAthletes Champions Roster
Things are impossible until they are not.
Sarah Philpott is a shining example of this truism.
“I was a decent athlete but not elite,” she acknowledged. “Somehow, I was able to make a life-changing pivot in my forties, deciding to train for and then swim the English Channel in 2020 when I was 42. Now I’ve become the third woman and seventh person to ever swim the Original Triple Crown of Open-Water Swimming (the English, Bristol, and North Channels) and I want to swim more of the world's most dangerous channels and all with a good purpose, to raise awareness of ocean conservation and climate change, which is a seemingly impossible task, but one I have to take on!”
“Sarah’s drive and ability to face and overcome challenges that most of us would never consider at any age is an inspiration,” EcoAthletes founder and CEO Lew Blaustein asserted. “That’s why we were honored to extend an invitation to her to join the EcoAthletes Champions team and were very happy that she accepted!”
Sarah Philpott enters the water for her North Sea swim (Photo credit: Sarah Philpott)
Prior to swimming the English Channel, Philpott had not swum for 15 years, and nor did she grow up as a competitive swimmer. But living as she always has in the shadow of the iconic White Cliffs of Dover — the starting point of all English Channel Swim attempts — she says she always knew that one day she wanted to try.
“As a young girl, I swam once a month and wanted to do more,” Philpott recalled. “I told my parents that other kids came to school having gone swimming in the very early morning, but they didn’t go for that.”
Still, she would run with her dad, cycle on her own, and swim with her friends occasionally. At 17, she joined her local triathlon club (“the first time I put on an official swim hat”), and just two years later she was at her first World Triathlon Championships representing Great Britain. She went onto compete in a total of five consecutive World Championships, but getting to the elite level wasn’t in the cards, in part because of a lack of access to club sport as a child, and professional coaching as a teenager.
“I enjoyed it for what it was,” she noted. “As I got into my mid-20s, I got into mountain biking mainly for fun. And I got into my career, as a sports development officer of 15 years, and then transferred these skills into the world of business development. Sports at a serious level? That was over for me.”
Or so she thought.
Fast forward to the first COVID lockdown of 2020 and things were about to change for Philpott, big time!
“The government allowed us outdoors for an hour a day of exercise,” she shared. “So, I slipped into the sea knowing that I wouldn’t get caught if I was outdoors for more than an hour. And I just swam for longer and longer each time I went. Within three months I completed a six-hour swim in water that was 59°F (15°C), and so the Channel Swim coaches on the beach spotted me and encouraged me to take up the challenge.”
COVID actually helped Philpott here.
You see, the 14 specialist boat pilots that are authorized to escort swimmers across the channel are normally booked up two to three years in advance. But due to the COVID travel ban, all the international swimmers had to cancel, and Philpott was able to seize the opportunity with support of her employer who contributed towards the very high fees.
“On September 14, 2020, five months after I started training, I found myself going into the water for the 21-mile swim,” she recalled. “The first six hours were good but then I started to get nauseous, and the salt water swelled my nose and mouth. But I kept going, meditating and essentially relinquishing control. Then 13 hours and 48 minutes later, under the cover of darkness, I swam ashore in France!”
After accepting congratulations for completing one of the great endurance tests in world sport — for perspective, over 6,500 people have climbed Mount Everest, but only 2,500 have swum the English Channel — Philpott asked herself “what next?”
She looked around for similar, if not tougher swims and she found out about The Original Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming which had never been completed by a woman. She already had one in her hip pocket. She needed to conquer The Bristol Channel and The North Channel.
Sarah Philpott drapes the British flag over her shoulders after completing her North Sea swim (Photo credit: Sarah Philpott)
Next up for Philpott would be The Bristol Channel, a mere 16miles, but cutting across the world’s second largest tidal range between southwestern England and southern Wales. In typical Philpott-ian fashion, she just looked upon this swim as a training session, and on June 22, 2022, completed a route within the Channel that hadn’t been swum in over 40 years, in a time of 12 hours 21 minutes.
Less than two months later, she went for the biggest and final hurdle of the three, The North Channel. It is considered to be the world’s toughest swim, and for good reason: the 21 miles from Northern Ireland to Scotland is not only extremely cold (14°C /57°F), but the water is home to blooms of the world’s largest jellyfish; the Lions Mane growing to an average of (200 cm/6 ½ feet).
It is beyond tough. Impossible some would say. But not for Philpott.
“In the North Channel, it’s not a question of if you’ll get stung; it’s how often,” she stated. “Towards the end of the swim, I had a full-body collision with one, and the sting is like a burn. Its tentacles lacerated all my arms and legs. The cold water numbed the pain, and I was able to complete the swim in 16 hours 21 minutes. When I got back on the boat and my body temperature rose, the pain just was overwhelming.”
Sarah Philpott, who had not been a serious swimmer prior to COVID, had completed the Orginal Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming.[1]
Sarah Philpott talks to school kids about the need for ocean protection and climate action (Photo credit: Sarah Philpott)
Between swims, Philpott, a lifelong lover of the outdoors, works to spark a #ClimateComeback among her growing social media following.
“In 2021, COP 26 was held in Scotland, and I felt I had to use the occasion to do something to inspire others to take climate action,” she offered. “So, as the sun rose on November 13th, I set out to swim the full length of The White Cliffs of Dover (12.9 km/8 miles) in 13°C/57°F temperatures, with my message being The Climate Crisis is on a Cliff Edge!!”
In addition to this work, Philpott uses the story of her swims to educate kids in schools about both water and ocean conservation. She sees becoming an EcoAthletes Champion as being a logical next step in her climate advocacy.
“I am excited to be part of the Champions community as we engage our fans on the need for and benefits of climate action!” Philpott enthused. “I look forward to engaging our followers to make small, positive changes — and then build those into to bigger changes.”
Kind of like the way Philpott’s swims during COVID lockdowns got longer and longer until she was swimming the English Channel.
[1] Philpott did not become the first woman to complete the English, Bristol, and North Sea Channel swims. Siân Clement and Elaine Burrows Dillane each did the trick in July, 2022, a month before Philpott swam the North Sea Channel.