Neil Gilson swims Switzerland’s 10 largest lakes, covering about 370 km

Herz — Switzerland Desk · 26 August 2026 at 14:16 · 30s summary · 3 min read

What we know

Neil Gilson has become the first person to swim in Switzerland’s 10 largest lakes, according to The Guardian. He covered about 230 miles (370 km) over the past two summers.

Gilson completed the challenge in Lake Geneva on Wednesday. After setting off on Tuesday morning, he swam 45 miles in just over 22 hours and arrived around lunchtime on Wednesday.

His daughter Lily, 12, and his son Jack, 10, joined him in the water for the final 200 metres.

A demanding final swim

After 18 hours in Lake Geneva, Gilson considered stopping. A strong current made the night difficult, but he continued as he looked forward to reuniting with his family.

A support team followed him by boat during the crossing and helped him continue, including by giving him coffee.

Gilson narrowly missed his own world record for Lake Geneva. He believes Guinness World Records will recognise him as the first swimmer to complete the challenge known as “Legend of the Lakes”.

Two summers in Switzerland’s lakes

A swim of about 40 miles in Lake Maggiore nearly ended the challenge this summer because the water was colder than expected.

Gilson increased his pace to maintain his body temperature, using more energy than anticipated. The Lake Thun crossing was also particularly difficult because of the physical effort and the pressure to finish the challenge.

He considers lake swimming more demanding than swimming at sea, citing unpredictable conditions such as wind-driven waves and areas of cold water.

From international competition to endurance swimming

Gilson, 40, is a father of three from Devon in south-west England. A former international athlete, he was once ranked second in Great Britain in the 1,500-metre freestyle.