The 39-year-old super-swimmer spent an arm-aching 37 hours non-stop powering 60 miles around the Caribbean island of Grand Cayman. He is the first person to achieve the feat.

Oly circumnavigated the island to raise awareness of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.

The plasterer from Upton near Poole has notched up some notable achievements in recent years, including the fastest swim around the Isle of Wight and becoming the first person to swim around the Greek Island of Ithaca. He already has his sights set on further firsts.

“It’s lovely to be recognised by the Guinness book of records but what’s more important is to do my bit to clean up the oceans,” said strapping vegan Oly who also raises money for environmental charities during his endurance swims.

“The Grand Cayman swim was incredibly difficult but I had a fantastic team who planned it in detail and were with me all of the way,” he said.

“I have recently set up a new charity called Project Planet Earth and I’ll be putting a lot of effort into that, raising awareness about plastic pollution.

“I also go into schools and give talks and the children really seem to take what I’m saying on board. I think we have a great generation coming through who really care about reducing pollution.

“Next year I aim to do another swim which I’m still finalising, but which will test me more than any of the others.”

‘Guinness World Records 2024’ states how Oly swam around the 59.3-mile distance in 36 hours 59 minutes. It includes a picture of an emotional Oly at the end of his world record.