12/05/2026
Partner Nick Jessen was recently sharing some insight at Palmerston North Boys High School after returning from part of his Oceans Seven swimming challenge. He had just completed the Moloka'i channel, also known as the channel of bones 🦴
We are so proud of you Nick! 💗🏊🏻♂️
Thank you to Mr Nick Jessen for joining us at assembly this morning. Alongside his busy work schedule as a local lawyer, Mr Jessen is a keen marathon swimmer and is working towards completing the Oceans Seven swimming challenge.
Mr Jessen spoke about the mental and physical challenges of ocean marathon swimming, both in training and in competition. He explained the feeling of exhilaration that comes from working hard, pushing yourself further than you had previously and knowing that you have produced the best effort that you can. Mr Jessen also emphasised the importance of continuous effort and commitment in order to improve and achieve. These key messages can be applied across all aspects of our lives.
The Oceans Seven is a marathon swimming challenge consisting of seven open water channel swims. It was devised in 2008 as the swimming equivalent of the Seven Summits mountaineering challenge and involves:
The North Channel: between Ireland and Scotland, 34.5 kilometres
The Cook Strait: between New Zealand’s North and South Islands, 22.5 kilometres
The Molokaʻi Channel (also known as the Kaiwi Channel): between Moloka’i and O’ahu, 42 kilometres
The English Channel: between England and France, 33 kilometres
The Catalina Channel: between Santa Catalina Island and Los Angeles, 32.3 kilometres
The Tsugaru Strait: between the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, 19.5 kilometres
The Strait of Gibraltar: between Spain and Morocco, 14.4 kilometres
Mr Jessen has completed the Cook Strait, Catalina Channel and Molokaʻi
Channel swims, and we wish him all the best for those remaining to be conquered.
