Philippe Croizon
Encyclopedia
Philippe Croizon is a French
athlete and the first quadruple amputee to swim across the English Channel
.
accident which occurred in March 1994. At the time, Croizon was employed as a steelworker at Fonderie du Poitou, 26 years old and married, with one son; his wife was expecting a second child. At his home in Saint-Rémy-sur-Creuse
, Vienne
, while standing on a metal ladder on the roof to work on a television antenna, Croizon received a severe electric shock from a high-voltage power line which earthed (grounded) through the ladder, to which he became adhered
. Twenty minutes passed before a neighbour could raise the alarm. He was hospitalized in Tours
, where doctors removed his left arm above the elbow, his right arm below the elbow, then his right leg above the knee. Surgeons had thought that the left leg could be saved, but when that also required removal, Croizon reported feeling "despair".
, in the sea near La Rochelle
. He experimented with different prosthetic limbs designed for swimming, with fins attached to the stumps of his legs. One set of specially designed prosthetics cost €12,000, and are made from carbon
and titanium
.
He wrote a book entitled J'ai décidé de vivre (I Decided to Live), using a speech-to-text computer system. He also made a parachute jump.
Croizon's preparations for the channel-swim attempt took 35 hours per week for two years; throughout the training period, he received letters of support from national politicians, including French president Nicolas Sarkozy
. It was during this period that he completed a swim from Noirmoutier to Pornic
in less than five hours.
in less than 14 hours. He set off from Folkestone
at 06:45, arriving at Cap Gris Nez
at 20:13, a distance of 21 miles (33.8 km).
After the crossing, he reported that he had felt pain, but was confident that he would finish.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
athlete and the first quadruple amputee to swim across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
Accident
His amputations were required due to a severe electric shockElectric shock
Electric Shock of a body with any source of electricity that causes a sufficient current through the skin, muscles or hair. Typically, the expression is used to denote an unwanted exposure to electricity, hence the effects are considered undesirable....
accident which occurred in March 1994. At the time, Croizon was employed as a steelworker at Fonderie du Poitou, 26 years old and married, with one son; his wife was expecting a second child. At his home in Saint-Rémy-sur-Creuse
Saint-Rémy-sur-Creuse
Saint-Rémy-sur-Creuse is a commune in the Vienne department in the Poitou-Charentes region in western France.-Demographics:-References:*...
, Vienne
Vienne
Vienne is the northernmost département of the Poitou-Charentes region of France, named after the river Vienne.- Viennese history :Vienne is one of the original 83 departments, established on March 4, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Poitou,...
, while standing on a metal ladder on the roof to work on a television antenna, Croizon received a severe electric shock from a high-voltage power line which earthed (grounded) through the ladder, to which he became adhered
Adhesion
Adhesion is any attraction process between dissimilar molecular species that can potentially bring them in close contact. By contrast, cohesion takes place between similar molecules....
. Twenty minutes passed before a neighbour could raise the alarm. He was hospitalized in Tours
Tours
Tours is a city in central France, the capital of the Indre-et-Loire department.It is located on the lower reaches of the river Loire, between Orléans and the Atlantic coast. Touraine, the region around Tours, is known for its wines, the alleged perfection of its local spoken French, and for the...
, where doctors removed his left arm above the elbow, his right arm below the elbow, then his right leg above the knee. Surgeons had thought that the left leg could be saved, but when that also required removal, Croizon reported feeling "despair".
Preparations
During his recuperation in the hospital, he saw a television programme about a female channel-swimmer, who Croizon said inspired him. He began a regimen of swimming, training for over five hours per day with the Maritime Gendarmerie, the French marine policeWater police
Water police, also called harbour patrols, port police, marine/maritime police, nautical patrols, bay constables or river police, are police officers, usually a department of a larger police organisation, who patrol in water craft...
, in the sea near La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
. He experimented with different prosthetic limbs designed for swimming, with fins attached to the stumps of his legs. One set of specially designed prosthetics cost €12,000, and are made from carbon
Carbon
Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds...
and titanium
Titanium
Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant transition metal with a silver color....
.
He wrote a book entitled J'ai décidé de vivre (I Decided to Live), using a speech-to-text computer system. He also made a parachute jump.
Croizon's preparations for the channel-swim attempt took 35 hours per week for two years; throughout the training period, he received letters of support from national politicians, including French president Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy is the 23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. He assumed the office on 16 May 2007 after defeating the Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal 10 days earlier....
. It was during this period that he completed a swim from Noirmoutier to Pornic
Pornic
Pornic is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique département in western France.-Breton language:The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhoneg on 1 March 2006.-Climate:...
in less than five hours.
Event
On Saturday, 18 September 2010, at the age of 42, he swam across the English ChannelEnglish Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
in less than 14 hours. He set off from Folkestone
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
at 06:45, arriving at Cap Gris Nez
Cap Gris Nez
Cap Gris Nez is a cape on the Côte d'Opale in the Pas-de-Calais département in northern France....
at 20:13, a distance of 21 miles (33.8 km).
After the crossing, he reported that he had felt pain, but was confident that he would finish.
External links
- Philippe Croizon – official website