India, Sept. 24 -- Kamya Bhardwaj, a 20-year-old Gurugram resident, completed an open-water swim across the English Channel in 14 hours and 19 minutes on September 22, becoming possibly the first female swimmer from Haryana to achieve the feat.

Bhardwaj, a Dyal Singh College student, began the swim from Shakespeare Beach in Dover at 5.35am and reached Cap Gris Nez in France at 7.54pm. She faced cold water, strong currents and jellyfish during the crossing.

The final stretch proved particularly difficult, with Bhardwaj encountering jellyfish near the French coast, she told HT. "The last four hours of the swim were very critical. I entered a jellyfish area near France. At first, I was swimming carefully, dodging the jellyfish as much as I...