Although it is a dangerous sport, its safety record is unrivaled. There have only been a handful of fatalities in approximately 150 years. Captain Matthew Webb was the first person to swim the Channel alone in 1875. He needed 21 hours and 45 minutes. In 1980, Bernard Tomlinson broke this record by nearly four hours when he completed the swim in 47 hours and 55 minutes. Since then, there have been few improvements made to swimming speed or distance, so the channel remains one of the most challenging events in sports medicine. The channel starts between England and France and runs eastward across the northern part of France, passing just south of Calais. It is about 25 miles wide in some places and up to 60 miles wide in others. The current usually flows at a rate of 3 to 4 knots (5 to 7 kilometers per hour), but it can vary significantly depending on the tide and other factors such as rainfall. Swimming in the channel is difficult because you need to keep an eye on both land and sea while navigating through narrow passages, strong currents, and large waves. The channel's depth varies from less than 1 meter near the shoreline to more than 20 meters offshore. Even small changes in depth can be dangerous because you might come across something unexpected under the surface. Divers who have swum the channel report that it has the second-highest risk of death after skydiving.