At 17, Gráinne Moss swam the English Channel — the first Irish
woman ever to do it. At 56, she became the 45th person on Earth
to complete the Oceans Seven, the seven hardest channel swims in
the world.
This conversation is about the 39 years in between.
We talk about the two failed attempts at the same stretch of
water between Ireland and Scotland — one she was elated by, one
that broke her.
About being stung head to foot by jellyfish and somehow swimming
on for seven more hours.
About looking back at the White Cliffs of Dover three hours into
the Channel — and her utter despair at realising she'd barely
moved.
About finishing her first channel crossing at 17 with nobody
there to meet her.
And about carrying everything she’s learned from ultramarathon
swimming — the grit, the resilience, the purpose — into one of
the hardest jobs in the New Zealand public service.
WHAT'S COVERED:
- The three hours that nearly ended her English Channel swim
- Being obliterated by a shoal of jellyfish — and why she got out
of the water happy
- How you keep going when you can't see any progress at all
- What a good coach actually does
- Night swimming, box jellyfish and the Channel of Bones
- Leading Oranga Tamariki — where she put her focus, and why she
says you have to know your own reasons before you take a job like
that
ABOUT GRÁINNE
Gráinne Moss (née Gunn) grew up in Bangor, County Down, and
started swimming in an unheated saltwater pool fed by the sea.
She swam the English Channel in 1987 in 11 hours 52 minutes, aged
17, becoming the first Irish woman to do it. She moved to New
Zealand in 1998 and swam the Cook Strait in 2001, and completed
the Oceans Seven in June 2026 with the Tsugaru Strait in northern
Japan — the longest span between first and final swim in the
challenge's history. She is Chief Executive and Secretary for
Regulation at the Ministry for Regulation, and was Chief
Executive of Oranga Tamariki from 2016 to 2021.
Visit Gráinne's blog https://grainnemoss.com/ for detailed
accounts of her swims and follow her on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/swimirishkiwi/.
—
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