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Lars Hamer

Hong Kong open water swimmer Edie Hu has become the fastest person to swim the stretch of sea that separates Denmark and Sweden.
Hu, 49, on Thursday became the ninth person to complete the Oresund Strait since its launch as an officially monitored challenge in 2021.
She finished the 20km (12.4 miles) swim in five hours, 10 minutes and 18 seconds, breaking the record.
After setting off in the morning from Bellevue Beach, about 10km north of Copenhagen, she said she was able to make it to Barsebacks Hamnkrog in Sweden in record time because of the near-perfect conditions out on the water.

“The currents were pretty flat and the wind was really strong – between eight and 10 knots – it was basically just pushing me all the way to Sweden,” she said.
“It was really great conditions. The water was really comfortable, about 17 to 18 degrees, which is about as cold as [the water] gets in January in Hong Kong.”
More than 45,000 merchant ships sail through Oresund every year, and on top of that, fishing cutters, recreational sailors, speedboats and other vessels mean swimmers have to navigate choppy water and heavy traffic.
Hu said she had hoped to complete the feat in around six to eight hours. However, she averaged around 4km per hour and came in 54 minutes faster than the previous record, set by American James Karn last year.
“The wind was giving me super strength, there must be some sort of Nordic word for this kind of wind,” Hu said. “Maybe Viking wind?”
Having grown up in the United States, Hu fell in love with open water swimming when she moved to Hong Kong in 2007 and has since taken down three of the Oceans Seven.
The Oceans Seven is a marathon swimming challenge consisting of seven open water channel swims.
The three Hu conquered were the 33km English Channel, the Catalina Channel of 32.3km and the 14.4km Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco.
The remaining four swims are the North Channel between Ireland and Scotland; the Cook Strait between New Zealand’s North Island and South Island; the Moloka’i Channel between the Hawaiian islands of Moloka’i and O’ahu; and the Tsugaru Strait between the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.
How many more of those Hu will take on is still undecided. What she does know is that she is off to watch the Paris Olympics.

“I’m turning 50 next year, I’m not sure what else I’m going to sign up for,” she said. “I’m going to Paris for the Olympics, I want to get some sun and hopefully I’ll be able to do [an open water swim] somewhere.”
Hu has tickets for the women’s 50 metres freestyle, the men’s 1500m freestyle and the men’s and women’s 4x100m medley relays, and hopes to see the Hong Kong team in action.
“I’ll be in the stand, holding the Hong Kong flag and cheering them on.”


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Swimming

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Edie Hu swimming the Oresund Strait. Photo: Amy Miao

Edie Hu (right) holds the Hong Kong flag after completing the Oresund Strait swim in record time. Photo: Amy Miao

Edie Hu encounters the choppy waters between Denmark and Sweden. Photo: Amy Miao

A record time is Edie Hu’s reward after reaching Sweden. Photo: Amy Miao 

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Edie Hu holds up a Hong Kong flag after swimming around Manhattan Island in the 20 Bridges challenge. Photo: Elizabeth Yuan


Edie Hu celebrates on a French beach after swimming across the English Channel. Photo: Jenny Barbour 

Edie Hu swims past the Empire State Building on August 14, 2022.  Photo: Jennie Chao 

The Catalina Channel at dawn saw Edie Hu swimming next to a member of her support team in a kayak. Photo: Judy Gee

Edie Hu with her 20 Bridges medal after swimming around Manhattan Island. Photo: Elizabeth Yuan 

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Siobhan Haughey will be among Hong Kong’s strongest medal contenders in Paris. Photo: Chanel

Siobhan Haughey, photographed by Chanel, said Hongkongers were “always behind me”. Photo: Chanel

Siobhan Haughey said she had refined her approach to swimming since the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Photo: Chanel

Sport

Outdoor

Extreme Sports

Edie Hu becomes ninth and fastest person to swim Oresund Strait, before heading to Paris to cheer on Hong Kong swimmers at the Olympics


Edie Hu becomes ninth and fastest person to swim Oresund Strait, before heading to Paris to cheer on Hong Kong swimmers at the Olympics.


Paris 2024 Olympic Games

Morocco