A woman from Bangor, County Down has become the first Irish swimmer to complete the Oceans Seven, a gruelling series of seven open-water channel crossings around the world. Grainne Moss, 56, finished the final leg - the 19.5-kilometre Tsugaru Strait in Japan - on Friday, June 18.

The Oceans Seven consists of the North Channel between Northern Ireland and Scotland (34 km), the Cook Strait in New Zealand (22.5 km), the Moloka'i Channel in Hawaii (42 km), the English Channel (33 km), the Catalina Channel in California (32.3 km), the Tsugaru Strait (19.5 km), and the Strait of Gibraltar (14.4 km). Moss is among fewer than 50 people to have completed all seven.

Moss, who now lives in New Zealand, first swam the English Channel in 1987 at the age of 17. The 14,200 days between that first swim and her final crossing last week is the longest span in the challenge's history. Her first attempt at the Tsugaru Strait in 2025 ended after 13 hours when a powerful current pushed the finish out of reach, leaving her 55km into the crossing before abandoning.

This year she returned and succeeded, bolstered by her mother's potato and leek soup. Moss stated that she was not willing to let the previous year's setback have the final word, and that the swim was about more than personal achievement.

The challenge raised approximately £21,500 (NZD 50,000) for Kenzie's Gift, a New Zealand-based charity that provides mental health support for children grieving the loss of a parent or sibling, or dealing with serious illness. The charity's founder and chief executive, Nic Russell, who also originates from Northern Ireland, said Moss had used her endurance to help young people she might never meet, a generosity as remarkable as the swimming itself.

By day, Moss serves as Chief Executive of New Zealand's Ministry for Regulation, undertaking her swimming and fundraising in a personal capacity. Donations remain open for Kenzie's Gift.