KUALA LUMPUR: Chelsea Ning Lee created history by becoming the first Malaysian woman to complete an energy-sapping 33-kilometre ultra marathon swim in France last week.
The 19-year-old did it in style at the Le Flow Des Gabarriers on June 3 by finishing sixth overall.
She was also the best female finisher with an impressive time of seven hours, 26 minutes and 48 seconds.
The top three spots were dominated by male competitors, with home representative Baptiste Duboil coming in first in 6:25:10.
Floryan Faccenda made it a 1-2 finish for France by clocking 6:35:03, while Olivier Delfosse of Belgium claimed the third spot at 6:47:43.
Held for only its second edition, Le Flow Des Gabarriers pride itself on being the longest non-stop open water marathon event in France
The river route covered 12 villages between the towns of Chateaueuf-Sur-Charente and Cognac, in the Charente region of France.
"I'm so happy to have accomplished this mission. Not only did I complete the race to be the first Malaysian woman to do it, but also with a time that I can be proud of," said Chelsea.
"I hope this feat has also made Malaysia proud!
"I've gained priceless experience from this stint, which will help me take my open water swimming career to greater heights.
"My biggest ambition is to represent Malaysia at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. I will work hard to get there."
Chelsea had won silver for Malaysia in the women's 10km (18-19 age category) during the inaugural Southeast Asian Open Water Swimming Championships in February.