Limbless swimmer braves Alaskan waters

A French swimmer without legs and arms has successfully swum the frigid waters separating Alaska and Russia.

Philippe Croizon, whose limbs were amputated after a 1994 electrical accident, completed his swim from Alaska's Little Diomede Island to the Russian maritime border near Big Diomede Island.

Mr Croizon had intended to swim all the way to the shoreline of Big Diomede, but regional Russian authorities denied him permission to enter the territory.

His swim to Russian waters took about an hour and 15 minutes and he was accompanied by his friend, Arnaud Chassery.

Mr Croizon uses paddle-like prosthetics to swim, and has completed crossings of the English Channel, the Red Sea and other major waterways.

His Bering Strait swim was the last in a series of expeditions across waterways that separate continents, according to Handicap International, the nonprofit organisation that helped organise the Alaska swim.

"I wanted to say that we both linked the five continents despite one country's objection," said Mr Croizon.

"Just to say that nothing is impossible. We can all succeed in life despite of what happens to us. There is no difference. We are all equal."

He now plans to travel to London to work as a radio and television commentator during the Paralympics.