India’s 16-Yr-Old Jiya Rai Becomes Youngest Para Swimmer to Swim Across English Channel

Although only 16 years old, Jiya Rai from Mumbai, became the youngest and fastest para swimmer to swim across the English Channel.

On July 28-29, Jiya swam through the English Channel from the Abbot’s Cliff in England to Pointe de la Courte-Dune in France in a time of 17 hours and 25 minutes. She swam a distance of 34 kilometres.

Jiya suffers Autism Spectrum Disorder. She is the daughter of Madan Rai, the MC-at-Arms serving in Mumbai. The Western Naval Command (WNC) congratulated the young para swimmer and wrote on X, “All personnel of WNC convey their heartiest congratulations to Jiya Rai for becoming the world’s youngest and fastest female para swimmer to successfully swim solo across the English Channel.”

Despite all her disabilities, Jiya is on a mission to become the world’s first and youngest para swimmer to swim seven oceans. As per the Western Naval Command, Jiya has swum across the Palk Strait from Talaimannar, which is in Sri Lanka, to Dhanuskodi, which is in India. She managed to cover a distance of 29 kilometres within 13 hours and 10 minutes and created a world record on March 20, 2022. She is world’s youngest and fastest female to swim across the Palk Strait.