Paul Leonard
Paul Leonard is a 52-year-old British open water swimmer from Tarporley, Cheshire, representing Red Top Swimming Club who is an Oceans Seven swimmer.
Contents
Open Water Swimming Highlights
- On 15 September 2022, he completed a 33.5 km crossing of the English Channel from England to France in 12 hours 39 minutes.
- On 24 April 2023, he completed a 14.4 km crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar from Spain to Morocco in 3 hours 24 minutes.
- On 6 August 2023, he completed the 45.9 km 20 Bridges Swim around Manhattan Island in New York City in 8 hours 38 minutes.
- On 4 October 2023, he completed a 32.3 km crossing of the Catalina Channel from Santa Catalina Island to the Southern California mainland in 11 hours 24 minutes to achieve the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming.
- On 26 January 2024, he completed a 23 km crossing of the Cook Strait from South Island to North Island in New Zealand in 8 hours 45 minutes at the age of 51.
- On 26 June 2024, he completed a 26 km crossing of the Bristol Channel from Porthcawl, Wales to England in 9 hours 15 minutes 53 seconds with manager Andrew Leonard and escort pilot Wild Frontier in 14-15°C water temperature.
- On 27 August 2024, he swam 34.5 km across the North Channel from Donaghadee in Northern Ireland to Portpatrick, Scotland in 12 hours 30 minutes 34 seconds, coached by Red Top Swimming Club coach Matt Duggan in 14-15°C water temperature with Wild Frontier as escort pilot.
- On 28 March 2025, at the age of 52, he was crossing the 45 km Molokai Channel from Molokai Island to Oahu when he was bitten by a cookiecutter shark around midnight and had to be pulled from the water by his support crew after 7 hours. He received 13 stitches for a bite on his left foot just above his ankle.
- On 4 August 2025, he attempted a 19.5 km crossing of the Tsugaru Channel in northern Japan, but aborted the swim after 10 hours due to the impending time limit.
- On 24 August 2025, he completed a crossing of Loch Lomond in 11 hours 58 minutes 3 seconds with escort pilots Andrew Leonard and Rebecca Leonard in 14-15°C water temperatures overnight.
- On 19 September 2025, he completed a 10.5 km crossing of Galway Bay from Aughinish to Blackrock diving tower in 3 hours 23 minutes 58 seconds with manager Andrew Leonard in 13-14°C water temperatures.
- On 8 October 2025, he completed a 45 km crossing of the Molokai Channel from Sandy Beach on Oahu to South Papohako Beach on Molokai Island in 13 hours 50 minutes at the age of 52, setting a record in the Oahu-to-Molokai direction.
- He was featured in the film Don't Be Prey, appearing as himself, that premiered in London on 24 October 2025.
Oceans Seven Journey
- English Channel in 12 hours 39 minutes in September 2022
- Strait of Gibraltar in 3 hours 24 minutes in April 2023
- Catalina Channel in 11 hours 24 minutes in October 2023
- Cook Strait in 8 hours 45 minutes in January 2024
- North Channel in 12 hours 30 minutes in August 2024
- Molokai Channel attempted stopped after 7 hours due to a shark bite in March 2025
- Tsugaru Channel attempted stopped after 10 hours in August 2025
- Molokai Channel in 13 hours 50 minutes in October 2025
- Tsugaru Channel in 11 hours 45 minutes on 18 June 2026
Oceans Seven Swimmers
As of 17 July 2026, 52 humans in history have completed the Oceans Seven:
1st: Stephen Redmond (Ireland)
2nd: Anna-Carin Nordin (Sweden)
3rd: Michelle Macy (USA)
4th: Darren Miller (USA)
5th: Adam Walker (UK)
6th: Kimberley Chambers (New Zealand)
7th: Antonio Argüelles (Mexico)
8th: Ion Lazarenco Tiron (Moldavia/Ireland)
9th: Rohan Dattatrey More (India)
10th: Abhejali Bernardová (Czech Republic)
11th: Cameron Bellamy (South Africa)
12th: Lynton Mortensen (Australia)
13th: Thomas Pembroke (Australia)
14th: Nora Toledano Cadena (Mexico)
15th: Mariel Hawley Davila (Mexico)
16th: André Wiersig (Germany)
17th: Elizabeth Fry (USA)
18th: Attila Mányoki (Hungary)
19th: Jonathan Ratcliffe (UK)
20th: Jorge Crivilles Villanueva (Spain)]
21st: Adrian Sarchet (Guernsey)
22nd: Prabhat Koli (India)
23rd: Dina Levačić (Croatia)
24th: Herman van der Westhuizen (South Africa)
25th: Andy Donaldson (Scotland)
26th: Stephen Junk (Australia)
27th: Kieron Palframan (South Africa)
28th: Bárbara Hernández Huerta (Chile)
29th: Mark Sowerby (Australia)
30th: Paul Georgescu (Romania)
31st: Zach Margolis (USA)
32nd: Petar Stoychev (Bulgaria)
33rd: Nathalia Pohl (Germany)
34th: Caitlin O’Reilly (New Zealand at the age of 20 years 7 months 15 days)
35th: Ryan Utsumi (USA)
36th: Marcia Cleveland (USA)
37th: Eduardo Collazos Valle-Guayo (Peru)
38th: Rob Woodhouse (Australia)
39th: Alessandra Rossi Cima (Brazil)
40th: Bengisu Avci (Turkey)
41st: Simon Olliver (New Zealand)
42nd: Andreas Waschburger (Germany)
43rd: Joanne Norman (Australia)
44th: Paul Leonard (Great Britain)
45th: Gráinne Moss (Ireland)
46th: Karen Ennis (Great Britain)
47th: Rob Lea (USA) who simultaneously achieved history's first Double Sevens
48th: Anshuman Jhingran (India) at 21 years 3 months and 17 days
49th: Joe Zemaitis (USA) the first person to complete the Oceans Seven and the Stillwater 8
50th: Bogusław Ogrodnik (Poland)
51st: Toni Enderli (Switzerland)
52nd: Steve Leitch (USA)
Honours
- He was selected as the 2024 British Long Distance Swimming Association Veteran Swimmer of the Year.
Oahu-to-Molokai Crossings
- Harry Huffaker, 32 at time of crossing, USA in 1972 in 16 hours 15 minutes
- Forrest Nelson, 40 at time of crossing, USA in 2006 in 16 hours 36 minutes
- Graco Morlan, 49 at time of crossing, Mexico in 2024 in 15 hours 33 minutes.
- Paul Leonard, 52, Great Britain in 2025 in 13 hours 50 minutes
- Bogusław Ogrodnik, 60, Poland in 2025 in 21 hours 59 minutes
- Edie Hu, 50, USA in 2025 in 16 hours 9 minutes
- Loren King, 57, Canada in 2026 in 13 hours 18 minutes
- Iskander Sagaminaga Ateaga, 43, Spain in 18 hours 53 minutes
External links
- Crossing The Molokai Channel Is A Huge Success
- Swimmers Supporting Swimmers - In The Media With Best Human Spirit
- Anshuman Jhingran Achieves The Oceans Seven
- The Summer of Oceans Seven: First Up Is Gráinne Moss, Karen Ennis, and Paul Leonard
- It Was Tough, But Paul Leonard Achieves The Oceans Seven
- Gráinne Moss Gets It Done and Achieves The Oceans Seven
- Karen Ennis Achieves The Oceans Seven
- Oceans Seven Swimmers Taming The Dragon Across The Tsugaru Channel
- The 2026 Tsugaru Channel Season: Foreigners Freestyling in the Far East
- Edie Hu Becomes First Woman to Cross from Oahu To Molokai
- Paul Leonard’s First Reactions and Actions in a Shark Attack
- Paul Leonard Swims Around The World With Sharks and Siblings
- Paul Leonard’s Molokai Channel Redux Is A Success
- One Day To Change Your Life – Mark Sowerby Experienced Many
- Don't Be Prey website
- Don't Be Prey IMDb
- Bengisu Avci Goes Seven To Complete The Oceans Seven
- Taking Aussie Tough to a Whole 'nother Level: Joanne Norman Is Back, Tackles Tough Tsugaru
- Yasemin Altintas and Murat Öz Abort Tandem Molokai Channel Crossing after Bite from a Cookiecutter Shark
- Aussie Tough: Joanne Norman Will Be Back
- Paul Leonard Is Hit By Cookiecutter Shark In The Molokai Channel
- Lorelei Schmidt Travels Cross Country to Cross Molokai in 19 Hours 38 Minutes
- Marathon Swimmers Federation bio
