Georges Michel

From Openwaterpedia
Georges Michel is an inductee (Honour Swimmer) in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame, Class of 2022
Georges Michel on the right with Arne Borg in 1927 in Brussels

Georges Michel was a French open water swimmer who was inducted in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame as an Honor Swimmer in the Class of 2022.

Open Water Swimming Highlights

  • He set the world record in the English Channel on 10 September 1926 in 11 hours 6 minutes from Cap Gris Nez, France to St. Margart’s Bay near Deal, England.
  • He had previously failed 9 nines before setting the world record, besting Ernest Vierkoetter’s record by 1 hour 38 minutes. His record held for 24 years.
  • He was the first French swimmer to cross the English Channel.
  • The 36-year-old baker from Paris reportedly spent 15,000 French francs on his 10 English Channel attempts.
  • He had previously won, in 1918, a 12 km and 42 km international marathon swim in the Seine River.
  • In the 1928 Wrigley Marathon for the Swimming Championship of the World held in conjunction with the Canadian National Exhibition, none of the 199 starters completed the swim, but Michel swam the longest and furthest battling for 11 hours, 12 minutes 57 seconds, covering 12 1/8th miles. Ernest Vierkoetter covered slightly less distance in less than 8 hours.
  • On 16 September 1928, Michel won the 39-mile race (and $500) across the St. Lawrence River from Montreal to Sorel.
  • After World War II, Michel actively continued in the world of professional marathon swimming.
  • He was Roger Le Morvan's coach who finished second in the Daily Mail races across the English Channel twice in 1950 and 1951.
  • In July 1953, Michel contributed to the creation of the "French Group of Nageurs de Longue Distance" bringing together professional and amateurs marathoners of which he was the first president.
  • In 1953 on the eve of the Paris International Nautical Marathon, he was one of the drivers to establish the International Association of Long Distance Swimming, and was the first honorary co-president, alongside the Ishak Helmy, another International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame Honor Swimmer.
  • He was a member of the International Professional Swimmers Association founded in 1927 in New York City.

International Professional Swimmers Association

The International Professional Swimmers Association was an international association organized on 21 September 1927 at the Hotel McAlpin in Manhattan, New York with its headquarters in New York City. The Association planned to issue a monthly publication to authenticate and keep records of a professional swimming events and to foster swimming throughout the world as an international sport.

Its officers included:

Its Board of Governors consisted of:

External links

Retrieved from "https://openwaterpedia.com/index.php?title=Georges_Michel&oldid=547499"