Swimmer Nick Thomas dies one mile from French shore in cross-channel swim attempt

Shropshire man was pulled unconscious from water by support team and later pronounced dead

'It is an extreme sport, we know the risks'

(Getty)

A cross-channel swimmer has died just a mile short of reaching France, organisers have said.

The man, named in reports as Nick Thomas, 45, from Ellesmere in Shropshire, was pulled unconscious from the water as he neared the end of the 21-mile endurance feat.

A spokesman for the governing body, the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation, confirmed a man had died.

He said: "A swimmer was taken from the water less than a mile from the finish in France.

"There was an extremely experienced support team on board the support vessel. He was given CPR and taken to Calais where he was sadly pronounced dead.

"It is an extreme sport, we know the risks. He was doing what he loved doing. Our thoughts are with his family."

Enduroman Ultra Events, which was tweeting his solo progress since leaving the UK early on Saturday, wrote: "Our friend Nick Thomas left us whilst doing what he loved - he just kept going.

"He'll always be a part of what we do and who we are."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are offering assistance to the family of a British national following his death in Calais, France."

PA