Raleigh teen swims the English Channel, completes 'Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming'

A Raleigh swimmer completed a prestigious test of endurance Friday, swimming across the English Channel at just 17 years old.

2026-08-08

Broughton High School student Lorelei Schmidt completed the swim from the coast of England to the French coastline in 12 hours and five minutes.

She had trained for years to take on the challenge and was scheduled to swim the channel earlier this week, but weather conditions delayed her attempt until Friday.

The feat gives Schmidt the final jewel of the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming. She swam the Catalina Channel and completed the 20 Bridges Swim Around Manhattan in 2024.

Fewer than 500 swimmers have completed all three.

Many people tracked her progress online throughout the day, including Billy Thorne, who coached her when she was a preteen.

"That's amazing," Thorne said. "All these years and so few people have made it, and she's one of them."

Last year, Schmidt completed the Kaiwi Channel, a swim that took more than 19 hours through one of the world's most challenging stretches of open water in the Pacific Ocean.

Schmidt is a member of the Marlins of Raleigh swim team.