David Yudovin

David Yudovin was an American channel swimmer from California whose career centred on exploring difficult sea passages. His website describes joining a swim team as a child and developing his long-distance swimming while attending Northern Arizona University. His first Catalina crossing came in 1976. After a serious medical emergency during an Anacapa attempt in 1978, he returned to complete that route in 1982, as recorded by the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Yudovin's English Channel success came on 20 August 1996, aged 45. The federation's historical entry records an England-to-France solo in 13 hours 37 minutes, piloted by Reg Brickell Jr aboard Helen Ann Marie, with J. Woodward observing. A contemporary newspaper report preserved on his website describes a month of preparation in Dover, an initially calm sea and worsening weather after roughly eight hours.

His wife Beth served as coach and manager and helped plan his overseas swims. Their wider itinerary included passages in Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand and the Atlantic islands. The Hall of Fame's career summary covers more than forty solo channel swims between 1976 and 2014, rather than forty English Channel crossings.

Away from swimming, Yudovin built a seafood business and later devoted time to volunteering and fundraising. His website records the sale of Ocean Crystal Seafood to its employees in 2005 and his selection for the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2014.

The recorded nationality is United States.