Stung By A Box Jellyfish In The Middle Of The Molokaʻi Channel: ‘I Just Kept Swimming’

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