These four people in Wenzhou are awesome!

　　Source: temperature news client reporter Ma Zhenzhen

　　Really "swimmers", dare to face the storms of the English Channel!

　　At 1: 35 am local time on August 4th, the first stick, Huang Zhongda, was quietly launched in Dover Beach, England. In the waves of the vast Atlantic Ocean, the Wenzhou Winter Swimming Team started a difficult journey across the English Channel.

　　Eleven hours, 54 minutes and 52 seconds later, in Calais Beach, France, Qing Qiang, the fourth stick, dragged his tired body ashore and waved excitedly to his teammates on board.

　　The English Channel is known as the Everest of swimming. In 1875, Matthew Wilbur, an Englishman, took 21 hours and 45 minutes to become the first person to swim the English Channel in history. Since then, the world's "swimmers" have followed suit, swimming from Dover to Calais, and crossing from Britain to France, which is regarded as a challenge for those who dare to swim.

　　148 years later, the names of Wenzhou people were written on the list of heroes who crossed the English Channel for the first time: 52-year-old Huang Zhongda, 48-year-old Xie Derong, 43-year-old Zhao Jing and Xiang Qingqiang. They successfully completed the challenge of crossing the English Channel by relay.

　　From left: Huang Zhongda, Xie Derong, Zhao Jing and Xiang Qingqiang.

　　Eight times to test the water in despair and see hope.

　　On July 20, the winter swimming team set off from Wenzhou to London to start the crossing trip.

　　In order to ensure the tour, Wenzhou Winter Swimming Association is equipped with a "4+3" team. Besides the four swimmers, Chen Xingguo, Lin Weiman and Xiang Xiaozhong are accompanied.

　　After arriving in England, the team members tried to adjust to the best condition while recuperating.

　　According to the plan, in the early morning of July 26th, British time, four "swimmers" will formally challenge the English Channel.

　　Things didn't work out. On the evening of 25th, the team was informed that the English Channel suffered the worst weather in recent years in July. There was a persistent gale at 2pm on 26th, and the crossing was postponed, waiting for notice.

　　Waiting for notice is one of the most powerless experiences in the world.

　　27th, waiting for the notice, 28th, continuing to wait, 29th still waiting ...

　　Wait, wait, wait ... Crossing the "window period" is far away.

　　The English storm seems to be intentionally testing the patience of Wenzhou people.

　　They have been preparing for four years in order to realize their dream of crossing the English Channel.

　　In the meantime, the winter swimming team has tried the water eight times and gradually adapted to the cold water temperature in the English Channel.

　　"We have conquered the water temperature, and now we are facing fierce waves. In fact, we are not afraid of the waves, but foreigners are afraid of going out to sea and the initiative is in their hands." Zhao Jing is very helpless.

　　The players are not without the impulse of "smuggling". "But every day, there are marine police boats patrolling and the port can't swim out." Xiang Qingqiang described this.

　　Recalling the mood of those days, Xie Derong used four words: "almost desperate."

　　"I have done what I should do, I have thought about what I should think, and I have a desperate heart." Huang Zhongda said that at this point, "adding money" is not enough, and the other party's reply is "waiting for notice for safety."

　　On the morning of August 2, the almost desperate Wenzhou team held a meeting and decided to relax in Britain in the next few days and go home on August 7.

　　Life is like this. When you are in despair, hope may follow.

　　In the afternoon, the Wenzhou team, who was watching a movie in the living room, received a short message from the captain: It is ready to cross at 2 am on August 4th, UK time!

　　I waited for a long time and finally waited until today. I dreamed for a long time and finally realized my dream ...

　　Fight the storm and swim to the other side of your dream.

　　At 8: 35 Beijing time on August 4 (1: 35 am London time on August 4), the water temperature was 16 degrees Celsius and the temperature was 13 degrees Celsius. With the captain's three horns ringing, the first stick Huang Zhongda jumped into the water.

　　The video sent back in front is like this: dark night, boundless sea, Huang Zhongda paddles rhythmically and walks alone.

　　In order to facilitate the captain's observation, Huang Zhongda's swimming cap and swimming trunks are equipped with flashing indicator lights.

　　Every flash, every stroke, is to swim to the other side of the dream.

　　Why choose a night tour? Xie Derong said that this was based on the choice made by the tide at that time. When the tide rose to the highest point, it went downstream, saving physical strength and speeding up.

　　For this crossing, the team members made full plans and conducted targeted night tour training when preparing for the war in China.

　　An hour later, the second baton was relayed by Xie Derong.

　　The four "swimmers" in Wenzhou were ranked according to their age, with Huang Zhongda as the first, Xie Derong as the second, Zhao Jing as the third and Xiang Qingqiang as the fourth. According to the regulations, the order of the four sticks cannot be reversed, and each person swims alternately for more than one hour until the finish line. If a team member fails to finish his one-hour swimming and gives up, it will be regarded as a failure of the whole team's challenge.

　　Another hour later, the third stick, Zhao Jing, jumped into the sea.

　　When it was the turn of the fourth event, it was already slightly bright. With the beautiful morning light, Xiang Qingqiang's figure of fighting the waves is particularly moving.

　　The first round of relay swam from midnight to dawn and from darkness to light.

　　Because there was no signal in the middle of the strait, there was no message in the second round of relay.

　　At 16: 00 Beijing time on the 4th, news came from the front: After seven and a half hours' relay, the four people had completed two-thirds of the journey, and the French coastline was vaguely seen on the boat.

　　At the scene, the 72-year-old recorder cheered for the Wenzhou Crossing Team in Chinese.

　　Victory is in sight.

　　At 17: 00 Beijing time, the third relay started. Huang Zhongda, Xie Derong, Zhao Jing and Xiang Qingqiang went into the water in turn. The closer the current, physical strength and willpower are to the finish line, the more severe the test will be, and the players' mood will become more and more excited.

　　Source: Chao News

　　At 20: 29 Beijing time on August 4 (14: 29 French time), it took 11 hours, 54 minutes and 52 seconds for Xiang Qingqiang to finally set foot on the coast of Calais, France, and four people made 12 sticks in three rounds, announcing that Wenzhou people had successfully crossed the English Channel for the first time.

　　Winter Swimmer from Wenzhou to Qiongzhou and then to Europe.

　　How difficult is it to cross the English Channel? Data show that since 1984, only more than 1,500 people across the world have succeeded.

　　Long distance, low water temperature, strong wind and waves and changeable weather are the four major challenges to cross the English Channel.

　　In 1999, Chen Xiongguang, a native of Wenzhou, tried to cross alone, but had to give up halfway because the water temperature was too low.

　　After that, for a long time, no Wenzhou people tried to cross again, but they didn't want to, but they were brewing.

　　Twenty-four years later, the "four in one" of Wenzhou Winter Swimming Association came to fight again.

　　Wenzhou's four "swimmers" are all strange people.

　　"Talent" Huang Zhongda, vice chairman of the Winter Swimming Association, came into contact with winter swimming in 2008. In 2011, he swam across Qiongzhou Strait in 6 hours and 19 minutes, which was the fastest record at that time. He once swam from Taishun Baizhang to Wencheng Shanxi.

　　"Iron Man" Xie Derong, vice chairman of the city triathlon association, has successfully crossed the Straits of Malacca, Qiongzhou and Korea's Qiuli Railway (226 kilometers in total), and completed the escape from Alcatraz Ironman, one of the most difficult events in the world, in 2018.

　　"Niu Ren" Zhao Jing, a private entrepreneur, is fond of swimming and Tiesan. He can swim for more than 20 minutes in the water temperature of 10℃. He is nicknamed "Niu Jing" in winter swimming and affectionately called "Jing Ge" in Tiesan.

　　"Strong man" Xiang Qingqiang works in Yongqiang Power Supply Company and loves extreme challenge sports. From a landlubber to a strong swimmer who participated in more than 300 national competitions, he swam 600 kilometers a year in 2020.

　　Talent+Iron Man+Bull Man+Strong Man, Wenzhou Winter Swimming F4, hand in hand to write a new history.

　　At this moment, let's turn the clock back to 40 years ago.

　　On the first day of the first month in 1983, the initiative of six young men opened a precedent for Wenzhou to cross the Oujiang River in the Spring Festival. In the past 40 years, this activity has never stopped and has become one of the oldest mass sports brand activities in Wenzhou.

　　On June 19th, 1998, Chen Xiongguang became the first person in Wenzhou to successfully swim across Qiongzhou Strait. Wenzhou winter swimmers have made eight expeditions to Qiongzhou Strait, and a total of 56 people successfully crossed it.

　　On August 4th, 2023, Huang Zhongda, Xie Derong, Zhao Jing and Xiang Qingqiang successfully crossed the English Channel by relay, which opened a new chapter for Wenzhou winter swimming.

　　From crossing Oujiang River to crossing Qiongzhou Strait

　　Then cross the English Channel;

　　From Wenzhou to Qiongzhou and then to Europe;

　　From the Oujiang River to the South China Sea and then to the Atlantic Ocean;

　　Dare to be the first in the world, Wenzhou people "swim" to the end of the world!

　　More new things pay attention to Wenzhou Fresh Express.