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USAUnited StatesSport:SwimmingMarcia Cleveland swam for Greenwich High School in Connecticut and continued swimming at Yale. She turned to open water in her twenties. Manhattan Island gave her an early opportunity to race a marathon distance. To prepare for the English Channel, she trained around her working day in New York and spent ten hours in Lake Sunapee, New Hampshire, in September 1993.
On 29 July 1994, Cleveland entered the water beneath Abbot Cliff before dawn. She reached the rocks at Cap Gris Nez in 9 hours 44 minutes. Her book Dover Solo grew out of the preparations as well as the crossing itself. Cleveland later returned to the Channel as a crew member and relay swimmer. In 2003 she and five teammates took 20 hours 18 minutes to swim from England to France and back.
Her Catalina Channel swim in 2005 completed the Triple Crown with Manhattan and the English Channel. Twenty years later she finished the Oceans Seven by crossing the Strait of Gibraltar alongside her daughter, Julia Cleveland Green. Cleveland has also coached masters swimmers, taught adults to swim and organised safety swimmers and clinics for open-water events in Chicago.
The recorded nationality is United States.
1994 Dover Solo author · 2003 two-way relay · Oceans Seven in 2025
Crossing details, recordings & verificationSolo · 1-way
England → France
Friday, 29 July 1994 (departure)
Friday, 29 July 1994 (completion)
Elapsed time · 9h 44m
Start clock · 04:09:00 · Time zone not specified
Finish clock · 13:53:00 · Time zone not specified
Ratifying body's record checked · See the crossing record for qualifications and supporting evidence.
Relay · 2-way
England → France → England
Sunday, 20 July 2003 (recorded swim date)
Team elapsed time · 20h 18m 0s
Start clock · Clock time not confirmed
Finish clock · Clock time not confirmed
Force Six America · Scott Lautman · Marcia Cleveland · Marcella MacDonald · Cristian Vergara · Henry Eckstein · Vince Herring
Qualification · Six swimmers shared both legs. The 20h 18m 0s is the team’s elapsed time.
Published account checked · See the crossing record for qualifications and supporting evidence.
These legs form one continuous 2-way swim.
Leg 1 · England → France · 10h 26m 0s
Leg 2 · France → England · 9h 52m 0s
1993-09
Swam for ten hours in preparation for the Channel.
1994-07-29
Reached Cap Gris Nez after leaving England below Abbot Cliff.
2003-07-20
Swam with the six members of Force Six America on the return crossing.
2005
Her Catalina crossing completed the set with Manhattan and the English Channel.
2020
Selected as an Honor Swimmer in the class of 2020.
2025-05-20
Completed the series in the Strait of Gibraltar alongside her daughter.
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First recorded finish
1 more finish needed
0 of 1 recorded
Selected swimming performances appear in the English Channel record above.
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