Roger Allsopp

Roger Allsopp is a British open water swimmer and retired breast-cancer surgeon whose Channel swims supported medical research. Based in Guernsey, he prepared in the island's outdoor bathing pools and at Cobo Bay. He also trained with the Guernsey Masters under Frank Le Conte. His first successful Channel crossing, on 30 August 2006, took 15 hours 30 minutes; the federation records him as 65 and describes it as a British age record at the time.

Allsopp returned five years later with a larger fundraising aim: equipment and running costs for cancer research at Southampton. After a lengthy wait for suitable conditions, he crossed from England to France over 30–31 August 2011. Guinness confirmed that, at 70 years and four months, he had become the oldest man to complete the swim. The CS&PF records 17:51:00, while Guinness reports 17:51:19; the difference is retained with the crossing.

He also developed writing as part of his public work. The Association of Distance Learning Colleges records that he joined the Writers Bureau in 2010 and wrote two books combining fact and fiction to explain cancer to younger readers. His 2011 age record is a dated achievement: Cyril Baldock and then Otto Thaning raised the mark in 2014.