91Èȱ¬

Twenty-year-old Sophie set her sights firmly on swimming the English Channel.Ìý It was quite a challenge considering she admits to being a reluctant swimmer as a child: "My Mum had to bribe me with Jaffa Cakes to get me to the end of the pool - but it stood me in good stead!"

Crossing one of the world's busiest shipping lanes

Now a third-year archeology student at Southampton University, Sophie's aim was to swim to France - a 36 kilometre swim in waters no warmer than 16 degrees celcius.

July 28 was the chosen day with Sophie taking to the water at Dover at 4.40am.

'Hellish'

However while she made good early progress as the sun rose, the middle stages of the channel currents proved more of a challenge than she had expected when she had to swim for long periods against the tide.

Sophie swims the channel

She described the middle section as "hellish".Ìý

It was nightfall by the time Sophie reached France suffering from "crippling shoulder pain".Ìý

She had to wear glowsticks so she could be seen in the final stages: "I could see the cliffs of France but I wasn't getting any closer.Ìý It was the longest mile and a half of my life!"

Her crew contemplated pulling Sophie from the water and abandoning the effort after 13 hours, but she was determined to keep going.

"I will do whatever it takes to get there, and I will keep swimming, but I just can't go any faster!", she told her support team.

Sophie climbs aboard the support vessel

Her determination paid off and Sophie eventually made it to the sandy beaches of northern France, 17 hours, 35 minutes after leaving Dover, to cheers and applause from locals as well as her support team.

The day after, Sophie told 91Èȱ¬ Radio Solent: "I feel pretty rotten, my body is raging in protest against what I've made it do!"

Everest

The rules of the challenge stated that she could not touch the side of her support boat and can only tread water while pausing to feed.

She took on the 'Everest' of swimming challenges in memory of her uncle, James Palmer who died in 2004.Ìý Sophie raised over £5,000 for the Royal Marsden specialist cancer treatment hospital in London.

"It is in his memory that I am doing this swim. His strength of spirit, determination, kindness and character remain my biggest inspiration in everything that challenges me throughout life."

Sophie's longest swim previously had been nine kilometres and she took part in training sessions in the Solent as well as open water races where she learnt valuable lessons from other long distance swimmers:

"It's so much more of a challenge to deal with the cold and the salt water and all the gross things that touch you!"

"I get the bit between my teeth and if I want to do something enough, I'll do it.Ìý You can train your body to do almost anything if you put your mind to it.Ìý It is as much mental strength as it is physical."