With Adam Walker‘s nearly 17-hour conquest of the Molokai Channel along an unprecedented route that torturously took him along the southern coast of Oahu yesterday, the British swimmer joins the growing group of marathon swimmers who are closest to the exclusive goal of the Oceans Seven.

With a brutal encounter with Portuguese man o war now to his credit, he joins the handful of swimmers who have survived such an encounter and barreled on to their marathon swimming goal.

The athletes below are the handful of athletes who are the crème de la crème of the Oceans Seven candidates.

1. Stephen Redmond (Ireland): English Channel, North Channel, Catalina Channel, Strait of Gibraltar, Cook Strait: 6 with 1 more to go (scheduled to cross the Tsugaru Channel in July 2012).

1. Penny Palfrey (Australia): English Channel (2 times), Strait of Gibraltar, Catalina Channel, Cook Strait, Molokai Channel, Tsugaru Channel: 6 with 1 more to go (scheduled to cross the North Channel in August 2012).

3. Michelle Macy (USA): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Molokai Channel, Strait of Gibraltar, Cook Strait, Strait of Gibraltar: 5 with 2 more to go (Tsugaru Channel and North Channel both scheduled for summer 2012).

4. Darren Miller (USA): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Molokai Channel, Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (Tsugaru Channel scheduled between 10-12 July 2012, Cook Strait for March 2013, and the North Channel for August 2013).

4. James Pittar (Australia): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Cook Strait and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

4. Kevin Murphy (England): English Channel (34 times), Catalina Channel, North Channel (two times) and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

4. Forrest Nelson (USA): English Channel, Catalina Channel (both ways and two-way), Molokai Channel (both ways) and Cook Strait: 4 with 3 more more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

4. Bula Chowdhury Chakraborty (India): English Channel (twice), Catalina Channel, Cook Strait and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

4. Tom Hecker (USA): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Cook Strait and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

4. Pieter Christian Jongeneel Anderica (Spain): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Cook Strait and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (Molokai Channel scheduled for 2012).

4. T. Scott Coleman (USA): English Channel, Catalina Channel, Cook Strait and Strait of Gibraltar: 4 with 3 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

11. Michael Miller (USA): Molokai Channel, English Channel, Catalina Channel: 3 with 4 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

11. Anna-Carin Nordin (Sweden): Molokai Channel, English Channel, Strait of Gibraltar: 3 with 4 more to go (Catalina Channel scheduled for July 2012, Tsugaru Channel scheduled for September 2012, North Channel scheduled for 2012 and Cook Strait scheduled for 2014).

11. Adam Walker (UK): English Channel, Strait of Gibraltar, Molokai Channel: 3 with 4 more to go (remaining schedule unannounced).

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