Butterfly - Oldest Person Completing Marathon Distance 10K+
Robin Lajoie born 27 March 1955 holds the record for being the oldest person known to have completed an official marathon swim (10K+) event using only the butterfly stroke without a wetsuit and only FINA legal kicking (dolphin only, no whip kicks).
The record was set 11 September 2022 at the 6.21 mile / 10K event at the Welland Canal Open Water Swim charity swim in Welland, Ontario near Niagara Falls, Canada in 4 hours, 56 minutes, 30 seconds. Lajoie's age on completion of this event was 67 years, 168 days.
Lajoie previously swam the same event all butterfly in 2012, 2014, and his previous record swim in 2018.
Current Record Holder
Country: Canada
Location: Welland Canal, Welland, Ontario
Distance: 6.21 miles / 10.0 kilometers
Year: 2022
Time: 4:56:30
Previous Record Holder
Dan Projansky born April 12, 1958 held the record for being the oldest person known to have completed an official marathon swim (10K+) event using only the butterfly stroke without a wetsuit and only FINA legal kicking (dolphin only, no whip kicks) until unseated by Robin Lajoie.
His record was set Aug 3, 2015 at the 8.2 mile / 13.2K "Swim for Freedom" charity swim in Geneva Lake, Wisconsin, USA. Projansky's age on completion of this event was 57 years, 112 days.
Projansky swam this race annually from 2010-2015 each time in butterfly, but ran out of time in 2016 and was pulled after 6.5 hours and 7 miles in rough water. Projansky currently holds the record for Butterfly - Oldest Person Completing Ultra-Marathon Distance 25K+. To reduce chafing during marathon swims, Projansky frequently wears a rash guard shirt which provides no buoyancy.
Country: United States of America
Location: Geneva Lake, Wisconsin
Distance: 8.2 miles / 13.2 kilometers
Year: 2015
Time: (Time needed)
