Lewis Pugh is an ocean advocate, a maritime lawyer, and a pioneer swimmer. He is often described as the “Sir Edmund Hillary of swimming.
He was the first person to complete a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world, and he frequently swims in vulnerable ecosystems to draw attention to their plight.
He is best known for undertaking the first swim across the North Pole in 2007 to highlight the melting of the Arctic Sea ice. In 2010 he swam across a glacial lake on Mount Everest to draw attention to the melting of the glaciers in the Himalayas, and the impact the reduced water supply will have on world peace.
And in 2014 he became the first person to complete a long-distance swim in all the Seven Seas, a campaign he undertook to urge surrounding nations to create more Marine Protected Areas.