A French swimmer will try to become the first person to swim the Pacific Ocean. Ben Lecomte, 51, set off Japan on Tuesday his superhuman task of crossing the ocean. It will take him more than six months to complete the 9,000-km swim. He will have to swim eight hours a day to reach his target the west coast the USA. He will also have to face many dangers. There will be sharks, jellyfish, storms, rough seas, and very low water temperatures. He will also have to fight exhaustion and any injuries he picks along the way. However, Mr Lecomte said: "The mental part is much more important than the physical. You have to make sure you always think something positive."
Lecomte has been training six years to take this challenge. He has practised every day that time swimming in the sea. This is to make sure he is top physical condition. He has also been training his mind. It will be a very lonely swim and he needs to be mentally tough. Lecomte said he is doing the swim to raise awareness climate change, the effects plastic rubbish in the ocean, and the effects the Fukushima nuclear disaster the ocean. Scientists will also study his body to monitor how extreme exercise affects the heart. 1998, Lecomte made the first solo trans-Atlantic swim. It took him 73 days to cover the 6,400km. When he reached dry land, his first words were, "never again".
