Chinese swimmers conquer Cook Strait

WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- Two Chinese university students have swum across Cook Strait, the 17-mile stretch of water between the north and south islands of New Zealand.

Zhang Jie, 20, and Wei Gang, 23, battled choppy seas and winds of 23 mph to make the crossing in 8 hours and 3 minutes.

New Zealand event coordinator Philip Rush told reporters "it was an amazing swim. Conditions were not good and both swimmers are very, very tired and worn out."

The pair are members of Beijing Sport University's swim team, which is sending students around the world to publicize the 2008 Olympic games in China.

Over the next 18 months, Beijing students plan to swim across the Bering Strait between Russia and Alaska, the Red Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Panama Canal.