Ulrich Klinke

Islands of Hawaii showing the 9 main channels: Auau Channel (or the Maui Channel), Kalohi Channel, Alalakeiki Channel, Pailolo Channel, Alenuihaha Channel, Kaulakahi Channel, Kealaikahiki Channel, Kaiwi Channel (or Moloka'i Channel) and the Kaieiewaho Channel

Ulrich Klinke is a German-born open water swimmer from Hawaii.

Open Water Swimming Highlights

• He completed the first ratified channel swim across the Alalakeiki Channel between the islands of Kahoolawe and Maui in the state of Hawaii. The channel is 7 miles (11.2 km) wide and part of the Eight Seas.
• He finished 150th overall in the 2.3-mile Keawe Adventures North Shore Challenge from Ehukai Beach Park to Waimea Bay on Oahu on 4 August 2018 at the age of 73.
• He was inducted in the Hawaii Swimming Hall of Fame, Class of 2018, on 8 September 2018, in the ocean swimming category.
• He finished 12th in the 10 km North Shore Challenge marathon swim on Oahu on 7 September 2019 at the age of 75.

Hawaii Swimming Hall of Fame Induction

Ulrich Klinke was born (1944) and raised in Krefeld, Germany. He is a member of Waikiki Swim Club, Outrigger Canoe Club, and Porsche Club of America. Klinke has been ocean racing in Hawaii since 1976 (Waikiki Roughwater Swim) and continues to actively race in all the local ocean swim races 42 years later, has placed on the podium (top 3) in his age group 6 times in the Waikiki Roughwater Swim, 47 times in individual races in the North Shore Swim Series, and 16 times in the Double Roughwater Swim, as well as in most of the other ocean swim races on Oahu. He won the prestigious Outstanding Male Swimmer of the Year award from the Waikiki Swim Club in 1997, has completed 4 Hawaii channel crossings (including the first crossing of the Alalakeiki Channel), has won ocean regattas in outrigger canoe racing, and has mountain climbed 2 of the highest mountains in the world in the Himalayas and many of the biggest mountains in the European Alps.

Alalakeiki Channel Swimmers

The list of Alalakeiki Channel Swimmers includes the following individuals:

13. 2011 - Chris Palfrey, Kahoolawe to Maui
12. 2011 - Penny Palfrey
11. 2006 - Carl Kawauchi, Maui to Kahoolawe
10. 2006 - Alton Motobu
9. 2001 - Linda Kaiser, 1st Women, 1st from Maui to Kahoolawe, swam together
8. 2001 - Laurie Foster, 1st Woman, 1st from Maui to Kahoolawe, swam together
7. 2001 - Laurie Foster
6. 2001 - Mike Spalding
5. 1992 - Carl Kawauchi, 1st Crossing
4. 1992 - Ulrich Klinke, 1st Crossing
3. 1992 - Alton Motobu, 1st Crossing
2. 1977 - Bill Lawrence, Uncertified channel crossing
1. 1977 - Solomon Fernandez, Uncertified channel crossing

External links

• The Open Water Swimming Heroes of Hawai'i
• Hawai'i Swimming Hall of Fame
• A Race For All Ages: Aqua Sphere North Shore 5K/10K Swim
• Swimming Safely With Thoughts Of Sharks
• Linda Kaiser Swims The Eight Seas...Quietly, Courageously
• Shark Encounters Of The Closest Kind
• Ocean Adventurers Weigh Risks And Rewards, Part 2
• Ocean Adventurers Weigh Risks And Rewards, Part 1
• Shark Spawning Season In September
• Luis Saulny, Tim Marr Go Stroke-for-Stroke In Waimea Bay
• Klinke, Motobu, Pipes, Sakovich Honored In Hawaii
• Alalakeiki Channel Swimmer List
• Channeling Beauty Between The 8 Seas In Hawaii
• Aloha From One Island To Another
• North Shore Swim Series
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• Open Water Swimming
• Marathon Swimming
• I Got Stung
• Daily News of Open Water Swimming