Meet the 73-year-old 'oldest' channel swimmer

Otto Thaning from South African has become the oldest person to swim English Channel swimmer.

The 73-year-old heart surgeon, who first swam between England and France in 1994, said that he was so "exhilarated" that he was near tears, adding that he wanted to set an example that people over 70 years of age could do such things if they stayed fit and worked hard, the BBC reported.

Though the channel route is 34km straight across, currents make it impossible for the swimmers to cover it in less than 40km.

Thaning, who broke Australian Cyril Baldock's record, added that the biggest problem was maintaining the temperature, since the water was usually cold at this time, but thankfully was around 18C, which was warmer than usual.