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A schoolgirl who is a member of Deal Tri Squad and Dover Lifeguard Club is celebrating after achieving her ambition of swimming the English Channel.

Abby Taylor-Baptie completed the swim just nine days after becoming 16, which is the minimum age for those who want to make solo swims. She is likely to be the youngest successful Channel swimmer this year.

She set off from Shakespeare Beach at Dover late on Tuesday night, September 28, and arrived on the French coast 15 hours 43 minutes later. But it was far from plain sailing. After about 12 hours she didn’t appear to be making any progress and thought she was going around in circles.

An appeal was made via the internet for her friends to send messages of support and encouragement via e-mail and text and these were relayed to her in the water. She persevered and finally reached her goal.

Many of her friends and family were waiting on the quayside with balloons and flowers for her when she returned to Dover.

Abby, who is a pupil at Barton Court Grammar School in Canterbury, lives at Woolage between Dover and Canterbury and is a member of the City of Canterbury Swimming Club as well as Deal Tri and Dover Lifeguards. She took part in a relay Channel swim two years ago and has been training for her solo swim since then.

She was raising money for Demelza House children's hospice.

To support Abby's fundraising effort go to www.justgiving.com/Abby-Taylor---Baptie