Ross Edgley Conquers Iceland’s Unforgiving Coastline in World-First Swim
British endurance athlete Ross Edgley has etched his name in the history books as the first person to swim around Iceland.
The 39-year-old spent almost four months circumnavigating the 1,000 miles (1,609km) of brutal coastline, conquering freezing waters, bracing winds, and towering waves in the process.
Edgley, from Cheshire, celebrated crossing the finish line in Reykjavík on Monday, 8 September with his team by his side.
The challenge, which began in the Icelandic capital on 17 May, was well documented throughout on his social media.
Three one-hour documentaries following his journey will also air on Channel 4 later this year.
Edgley said he experienced extreme wetsuit chafing and even lost parts of his tongue due to prolonged salt-water exposure.
The mammoth feat required him to swim for up to six hours at a time, before resting on a dedicated support yacht.
To fuel that progress, Edgley was consuming 10,000 calories a day, supported by sports nutrition giant Myprotein.
“A huge congratulations to Ross Edgley, who took on this superhuman challenge and world first, not just for himself, but to better knowledge and understanding of sport and marine science,” the brand wrote on social media.
“He battled harsh weather and rough seas, but nothing got in his way to complete this epic journey.”
Edgley didn’t just embark on this quest to set a world first — he was also conducting a “scientific expedition for ocean conservation”.
The ultra-marathon swimmer collected 100 eDNA samples from Iceland’s chilly waters, with the aim of discovering more about the biodiversity and microplastics in the region.
His research was backed by several scientific organisations, including the University of Iceland.
This isn’t the first time Ross Edgley has broken new ground. He also holds the record for the world’s longest sea swim (1,780 miles) around Great Britain, and the longest non-stop river swim, powering 317 miles along the Yukon River in Canada.
After 113 days at sea, Edgley is now back home and enjoying some richly deserved comforts, including his mum’s cheesecake.
His break will only be a short one, however. Edgley is planning to begin writing his new book, launch new training programmes on the Suprā Training app, and start training for the next big expedition.
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