Completed double during a three-way attempt
Ratifying body's record checked
The completed two-way performance is retained as one record. The intended third crossing was not completed; the 8:38 opening leg is a split within this attempt.
Recorded swim date · Sunday, 19 August 1979 · Start or finish date not specified by the source
Elapsed swim time · 22h 16m
Duration of the complete swim
Started · Exact start date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed
Finished · Exact finish date not confirmed · Clock time not confirmed
Timing note · 19 August is the date attached to the opening leg in Ted Erikson’s later account. The full double’s separate start and finish dates and clock times have not been established.
Format · Solo · 2-way
Direction · England → France → England
Ratification / historical recognition · Channel Swimming Association
How this record was checked
CSA record 2440 gives a 22:16 two-way result. Its contemporary annual report explicitly describes the first two legs of a three-way attempt. Ted Erikson’s published interview dates Jon’s 8:38 opening leg to 19 August 1979; that leg is not entered as a separate swim.
Channel Swimming Association: Jon Erikson, 1979 two-way
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · 1979 England–France–England performance, 22:16; United States nationality.
CSA 1979 annual report in the BLDSA annual report, PDF pages 50–53
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · Jon’s 22:16 completed two-way was the first two legs of a three-way attempt; also reports Mike Read’s 17th crossing and its duration.
Limitations · Result-table dates and calendar dates appear in different sections; no exact start or finish clocks are supplied.
World Open Water Swimming Association: Jon Erikson’s Thoughts 3 Decades Later, 2013 interview
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · Athlete and father’s recollections, Rosemary George’s role, training approach and 19 August 1979 first-leg date.
Limitations · Retrospective account locates the final landing near Calais; contemporary AP says Wissant. It incorrectly calls Ted the first double crosser.
First completed three-way English Channel swim
Ratifying body's record checked
Ted Erikson supported his son aboard the escort vessel. The three explicitly published leg durations are parts of the single continuous triple, not separate crossing records.
Elapsed swim time · 38h 27m
Duration of the complete swim
Started · Tuesday, 11 August 1981 · Clock time not confirmed
Finished · Wednesday, 12 August 1981 · Clock time not confirmed
Timing note · AP reports departure on Tuesday morning and arrival shortly before midnight Wednesday; no exact clock minutes or time-zone designation is supplied. Calendar dates are corroborated by Guinness. The elapsed duration is not used to calculate either clock.
Format · Solo · 3-way
Direction · England → France → England → France
Departure · Dover, England
Arrival · Wissant, France, in the contemporary AP account
Escort vessel · Accord
Official observers · Tom Watch (contemporary AP); Rosemary George (Jon Erikson’s later account)
Ratification / historical recognition · Channel Swimming Association
Individual crossing times
These legs form one continuous 3-way swim.
Leg 1 · England → France · 10h 10m
Leg 2 · France → England · 13h 14m
Leg 3 · England → France · 15h 3m
How this record was checked
CSA record 2430 confirms 38:27 for a three-way swim. Guinness gives 11–12 August. The contemporary AP report independently describes Tuesday departure and Wednesday arrival, supplies all three leg times and identifies Accord and observer Tom Watch. Jon’s later interview names Rosemary George as an observer; it differs from AP about the final landing location.
Channel Swimming Association: Jon Erikson, 1981 three-way
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · First three-way performance, England–France–England–France, 38:27 in 1981.
Guinness World Records: first male triple Channel crossing
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · Dates the 38:27 performance to 11–12 August 1981.
Associated Press: Swims Channel Three Times, Daily Reflector, 13 August 1981, page 15
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · Contemporary report of Tuesday departure, Wednesday completion, Wissant landing, explicit leg times, Accord and observer Tom Watch.
Limitations · Spells Jon as John and misstates his father’s historical two-way duration; those errors are not adopted. The public original PDF was downloaded and visually inspected after the web reader returned 403.
World Open Water Swimming Association: Jon Erikson’s Thoughts 3 Decades Later, 2013 interview
Checked 2026-10-31
Supports · Athlete and father’s recollections, Rosemary George’s role, training approach and 19 August 1979 first-leg date.
Limitations · Retrospective account locates the final landing near Calais; contemporary AP says Wissant. It incorrectly calls Ted the first double crosser.
USA