They did it! ‘Gangsta Grannies' are first duo to swim the Channel and back

Nicknamed ‘The Gangsta Grannies', Ali Budynkiewicz, 58, and Lisa North, 48, completed their return crossing from Dover to France in just over 31 hours, swimming two-hour rotation shifts.

They have more than doubled their £1,000 fundraising target for the Bournemouth Churches Housing Association, which will help the charity provide activities, days out, sporting and art materials for the children of women affected by domestic violence.

During the swim, they were stung by jellyfish and encountered pods of dolphins and seals.

Lisa said the pair found it “amazingly tough” but felt “so chuffed” for having completed the challenge, and for being the first two people, let alone grandmothers, to have done the double crossing.

She said: “The first leg of the trip was harder and there were times when each of us questioned how we were going to do it. Landing in France was especially difficult as I was swimming for two hours trying to land on the cap, but the ferocious currents just kept pushing me away. Then Ali took over and it took her 21 minutes to land. But that’s team work, and you can’t dwell on it, you just have to keep going.

“Neither of us would have given up, and it was mentally easier on the return journey. All the training we did paid off.”

She added the support crew had been “fantastic”, fuelling them with plenty of fruit, chocolate, pork pies, and shouts of encouragement.

Since completing the swim, Ali and Lisa are focusing on resting, recovering, and celebrating their achievement.

“We trained very hard to condition ourselves and recover quickly, but it’s going to take a few weeks to get over the swim,” Lisa said.

“We have no plans for doing anything else in the near future and just want to relax. When the time is right, we will go for a little sea swim for pleasure, but, one thing’s for sure, we are not doing another Channel swim.”

You can still sponsor the pair via justgiving.com/fundraising/gangstagrannies.