Kayaker Paul Wycherley sets record for Channel crossing

Ollie Williams for the BBC reports:

 'British sprint canoeist Paul Wycherley kayaked across the English Channel in a new record time on Sunday, beating the mark set by his coach Ian Wynne.

Wynne, a canoeing bronze medallist at the Athens Olympics in 2004, crossed in two hours and 59 minutes in 2007.

But Wycherley took 31 minutes off Wynne's time in ideal conditions, finishing in two hours and 28 minutes.

"I got quite sore near the end but I'm chuffed to bits and I got a really good time," the 25-year-old told BBC Sport.

"I was just so lucky with the conditions. We chose the weekend about a year ago and it could have gone any way.

"It's October so you could expect wind and a lot of swell, but we had a really calm day.

"There were a couple of lumpy bits when the ferries went past but, if anything, they broke up the monotony of it all.'

 Read the full report on the BBC's website follow the link for a film of the crossing.