Scots student swims English Channel for sister

A university student has endured high seas and strong winds to swim the English Channel after watching her sister suffer from an incurable disease.

Aberdeen University student Emma Lister swam the English Channel in 17 hours and 39 minutes

Emma Lister, 21, made the crossing from Dover to Calais in 17 hours and 39 minutes and said she was “ecstatic” to have nailed the challenge.

Ms Lister was motivated to swim the famous route to fund research into ulcerative colitis, which her sister developed just as she was on the cusp of going to Edinburgh University.

Katie was diagnosed “out of the blue” aged 17 with Emma watching her endure years of serious health complications and long spells in hospital.

Ms Lister, who studies Physiology and French at Aberdeen University, said she wanted to raise awareness of the condition which had a “huge” impact on her sister’s life.

She has now raised £7,500 for Crohn’s and Colitis UK, with Katie there to cheer her on every mile of the channel challenge after boarding the support vessel Sea Satin with the rest of her family.

Ms Lister said: “Swimming the Channel was the toughest challenge I’ve ever set myself, and I was ecstatic to have succeeded.

“The high waves and strong winds hampered progress and there were times when I thought I was never going to make it, but my support team gave me the encouragement I needed to make it to France.

“I’m so grateful for the messages of support and congratulations I’ve had, not to mention the donations. My online donations are now over £7000 pounds and I have raised a further £400 through personal donations. The support people have shown is just unbelievable and very humbling.”

Ms Lister has previously represented Scotland at lacrosse and is captain of the university team,

Her sister now studies at Durham,