Biography · Sports & Achievement
Charles Chapman (swimmer)
Dates not recorded
United States
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Biography
Charles "Charlie the Tuna" Chapman (born 1954) is an American distance swimmer specializing in the butterfly stroke, who in 1981 became the first Black swimmer to successfully cross the English channel, and in 1988 set a record for swimming twice around New York's Manhattan Harbor, a 28.5 mile marathon. In 1997, he became the first person to swim twice around Alcatraz Island, departing from San Francisco.
Sources & collection details
Wikipedia contributors — original record ↗
Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-20