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The young Calvados swimmer Marion Joffle takes on the waters of the English Channel

Sports morning swim this Thursday, August 11 in the small waves of the beach of Hermanville-sur-Mer (Calvados). Usually a fan of swimming in much colder water (ice-swimming), Marion Joffle keeps the pace, four days from leaving for England, from where she will set off, between August 18 and 26, to cross the English Channel. swimming. “I have a little apprehension, stress, but also a lot of excitement. I can’t wait to be there to make my dream come true,” says the 23-year-old, from Lisieux, before jumping into the water for half an hour of training.

She would have liked to gain a little fat this summer

Marion Joffle has been preparing for this unprecedented challenge for several weeks: “Three to four weeks ago, I was doing 50 to 60 km per week, with heavy loads in the pool”. Add to that a 33 km outing in the river and a test of six hours and 19 km at sea, among other things: “small experiments to have a big mileage in your arms”.

Nothing less was needed to tackle this formidable challenge. The swimmer will leave from a beach between Folkestone and Dover to reach Cap Gris-Nez, on the Opal Coast. “In the best case scenario,” she admits. I can also drift as far as Cap Blanc Nez depending on the currents”. From 35 km to… 70 km of effort. From ten o’clock to… much more. All with a few refueling breaks but without being able to grab the boat that will accompany it.

This hot summer of 2022 has certainly raised the temperature of the English Channel, but it is water at around 20°C in which Marion Joffle will fight for long hours. This does not scare the Calvadosienne, who has seen others: “Cold water is something that I have had in me since 2018. I swim in waters below five degrees, in competitions from 25 to 1000 meters. I recently swam in -1°C water in the Arctic”. Reference to her last challenge, last May in northern Norway, during the Ice-mile, which she had almost completed in full (1609 m) before being defeated in the last meters by the extreme cold. Even today, she confides “no longer remembering the last 400 meters”.

These experiences of extreme conditions will be of precious support to him during his crossing. The swimmer who assures us “not to be afraid of long distances”, has cultivated a strong mind in the icy waters. “If the mind is there, the physical can follow. The Ice-mile made me stronger. It was beneficial to me. I’m the type to take life in a positive light, so that can do it”, slips into a grin the “Smiling Penguin”. Like her favorite animal, Marion Joffle would have liked to gain a little fat, an asset to better resist the cold. Alas, “I didn’t succeed,” she laughs. My body spends a lot. Eating even more is difficult and not very good. So I will go with the body that I have. Then the water is warmer so the weather is with me”.

The middle finger of the right hand does not miss him too much

So it doesn’t matter if you have to leave England for a higher route (France does not allow crossings from its coasts in the current migratory context), or not having been able to train at sea as you would have liked to worrying about the accompanying kayak, or crossing a current-swept strait with a small handicap. At the age of 6, she indeed lost the middle finger of her right hand due to a rare tumor. “I learned to swim without it. My fingers came together naturally. It’s not a problem,” she says.

His next challenge will take him to Antarctica.

So the time has come to get started. “She has merit this little, greets the owner of a small guinguette at the edge of the beach where Marion Joffle has her habits. He’s a very simple person, with a great background. I hope the planets will align for her to succeed. » A zest of luck and an immense determination to achieve a feat which would give him credibility and visibility as a bonus, in order to convince sponsors to accompany him towards his next challenge, already in sight: the Ice-Mile. After the English Channel, Antarctica is already waiting for it in 2024.

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