Gloucestershire man, 38, sets off on five-month journey from Senegal to Brazil that will see him strive to swim a total of 1,900 miles for up to 10 hours a day

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

After a delayed start, a former British policeman aiming to swim across the Atlantic finally set off Sunday from Senegal, bound for Brazil more than 1,900 miles (3,000km) away.

“Here we go,” said 38-year-old Ben Hooper, as he tugged on his goggles and said goodbye to loved ones and supporters on the beach of a hotel in Hann Bay, in the east of Dakar.

“To the whole world thank you very much for your support,” he said, before striding into the waves at the start of the record-breaking attempt, expected to take nearly five months.

Ex-police officer to swim from Senegal to Brazil in shark invisibility wetsuit Read more

The father and former police officer from Gloucestershire was supposed to leave Africa’s western coast from Dakar, Senegal at the start of November but delayed his departure due to a problem with the support vessel. He postponed it again several times, until actually setting off on Sunday.

He has been preparing for over three years for the immense journey that will see him swim up to 10 hours a day across the Atlantic. “It has been a long time coming,” he said.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Ben Hooper will swim for up to 10 hours a day wearing a wetsuit designed to make him invisible to sharks. Photograph: Island Breeze Photography- Monik/Island Breeze Photography

Hooper was inspired to attempt the feat by two fearless English explorers: Ranulph Fiennes, who reached both the North and South poles overland, and Vivian Fuchs, the first man to cross the Antarctic on foot.

The Briton will rack up 1,635 nautical miles, equal to nearly 1,900 land miles (3,000km) over the course of the journey, while taking in up to 12,000 calories a day. He will don a wetsuit specially designed to make him invisible to sharks.

Hooper’s journey will be observed by a Guinness World Records representative who will join a crew of 10 supporting the swimmer.

His crossing will be filmed and can be tracked on his “Swim the Big Blue” website. Hooper has a £1m fundraising target.

Only one man has achieved a comparable feat before: Frenchman Benoit Lecomte, who swam across the Atlantic in the other direction in 1998, from Cape Cod to Quiberon in north-western France.

But he did not make the Guinness book of records because fatigue forced him to rest up in the Azores for nearly a week.

• To donate to Hooper’s charities go to: www.swimthebigblue.com/charities



• He can be followed on: www.followmychallenge.com/live/swimthebigblue