Greg Johnson Completes The Peak And Pond

Steven Munatones 07/07/2021 open water swimming No Comment

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

What is harder: climbing up Mount Everest or swimming across the English Channel?

The debate can go on and on with mountaineers and open water swimmers both – simultaneously and confidently – claiming their chosen sport is more difficult, but only a few humans in history can express their opinions based on their own personal first-hand experience.

Greg Johnson is one of those 12 individuals who have summited Mount Everest and swim across the English Channel. The 42-year-old British mountaineer and open water swimmer from Basingstoke in southern England just joined the Peak and Pond Club.

Johnson climbed up Mount Everest in May 2019, the fifth of the Seven Summits, as a charity climb for Lifeline WA. This week, he also completed a 33.5 km crossing of the English Channel from England to France on July 1st in a grueling 18 hours 15 minutes as a charity swim to support Lifeline.

Members of the Peak and Pond Club:

1. Hugo Rodríguez Barroso (Mexico) – accomplished twice

Mount Everest summit in 1997
English Channel crossing on 13 August 1986 in 13 hours 0 minutes
Mount Everest summit on 6 May 1999
English Channel crossing on 26 August 1993 in 13 hours 4 minutes
Mount Everest summit in 2000

2. Eric Blakeley MBE (Jersey)

Mount Everest summit in May 1997
English Channel crossing: 24 August 2003 in 20 hours 30 minutes at the age of 38

3. Georgios-Ioannis Tsianos (Greece)

English Channel crossing on 5 August 2000 in 9 hours 20 minutes
Mount Everest summit in 2004

4. Matthew J. Williams (UK)

English Channel crossing on 22 September 2010 in 15 hours 25 minutes
Mount Everest summit on 23 May 2008

5. Bill Borger Jr. (Canada)

English Channel crossing on 9 September 2000 in 12 hours 11 minutes
Mount Everest summit on 12 May 2011

6. Boguslaw Ogrodnik (Poland)

Mount Everest summit on 18 May 2006
English Channel crossing on 27 July 2014 in 20 hours 33 minutes

7. Gabriel Viti (USA)

Mount Everest summit on 22 May 2010
English Channel crossing on 7 August 2014 in 15 hours 50 minutes

8. Allan McLeland (USA)

English Channel crossing on 28 September 2008
Mount Everest summit on 23 May 2017

9. Jason Snell (UK)

Mount Everest summit on 15 May 2016
English Channel crossing on 23 September 2017 in 16 hours 30 minutes

10. Patrick McKnight (USA)

English Channel crossing on 21 July 2016 in 12 hours 54 minutes
Mount Everest summit on 18 May 2018

11. Rob Lea (USA)

Mount Everest summit on 24 May 2019
English Channel crossing on 10 July 2019 in 11 hours 47 minutes

12. Greg Johnson (UK)

Mount Everest summit in May 2019
English Channel crossing on 1 July 2021 in 18 hours 15 minutes

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Steven Munatones

Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.

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