Who is Mihir Sen? All you need to know about the first Indian to swim the English Channel

Mihir Sen holds an important place in India’s history in swimming. Back on September 27, 1958, Sen became the first from his country and the first Asian to cross the English Channel. He was 28 years old and took 14 hours and 45 minutes to cross the channel.

From once training to become a barrister, Sen’s career took a turn where he etched his name in the history books. Sen took to swimming at the professional level after he moved to England. He honed his skills at the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) pool in London. In 2013, his daughter, Supriya Sen, said that her father was determined to help India build a reputation.

“His motive for swimming the seven seas was primarily political. Being a young nationalist of uncommonly strong views and unorthodox ambition, he wanted to show the world what Indians are made of, to set for young Indians an example of courage and to tell them that one of the best things to do with life is to risk it,” Supriya Sen wrote in The Telegraph.

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Mihir Sen goes on an otherworldly streak in swimming

In 1966, Mihir Sen achieved the unique feat of swimming the oceans of all five continents in a calendar year. He started the streak by swimming the Palk Strait in 25 hours and 36 minutes.

Thereafter, Sen swam the Straits of Gibraltar in eight hours and one minute. He kept growing in status after he crossed the Dardanelles in 13 hours and 55 minutes. He followed it up with another performance as he swam the Bosphorus in four hours.

Mihir Sen did not stop and finished the streak by crossing the Panama Canal in 34 hours and 15 minutes. On the back of his incredible performance, Sen also found his place in the Guinness Book of World Records.