A Tavistock student is making waves as he plans the ultimate endurance challenge – to swim the English Channel, having excelled in two swimming competitions, despite suffering seasickness.
Mount Kelly College Year 12 pupil, Barnaby Ryder, 17, competed in the Oceanman World Final in Dubai this month (following his win at Oceanman Ibiza in October), coming second in his age category and an amazing fourth overall.
The 10km race compares to an Iron Man multi-event triathlon for its tough open-water swimming and Barnaby battled tough conditions and seasickness to finish second in the U19 category and sixth overall.
The world final championship is for the fastest swimmers who have qualified throughout the season by finishing in the top 10 of their age group at any Oceanman events. This has given him renewed confidence to plan his Channel adventure later this summer.
Barnaby has been swimming most of his life, taking it more seriously since the age of 12. He joined Mount Kelly College long distance squad, coached by Neil Edwards, swimming nine times and 50km a week.
He races 800m and 1,500m indoors and 5k and 7.5k national open water events, and now the 10km Oceanman.
He said: “Before Mount Kelly I was lived in the Middle East and entered open water competitions – obviously it was warmer but this created my love of open water swimming. I have always wanted to take on a big challenge for open water swimming and started mentioning swimming the Channel a few years ago.
“So I took the plunge and booked a pilot boat to join me on the 34km swim in June this year. I will still be 17 when the swim takes place. Ever since then I have been taking any opportunity to compete and practice in colder water too in preparation.”
He will raise funds for the Manup charity: “This is a men's mental health charity that is challenging the old adopted term that men should ‘Man up’ and just brush themselves off and carry on.
“It is funding groundbreaking research in to why so many men are suffering from mental health issues, and offering seminars on related subjects and I know personally of too many young people struggling. So I wanted to help by spreading awareness.
“I really feel taking part in sports especially something like open water swimming is so good for mental health and I would love to encourage others to give it a go. So this is why I'm am doing the swim.“
He planning a Channel training swim in Croatia at the end of March to prepare for the cold.
Barnaby is also trying to organise a 24km swim around the islands off Dubai in February half-term: “I do try and swim whenever I can in lakes and the sea in the UK which is really cold which is really cold at the moment. Recently I was in Ireland doing some cold-water swimming in some different lakes.”
Donations to Barnaby’s Channel swim can be made at this JustGiving link: https://www.justgiving.com/page/barnaby-ryder-channel-swim-2025