Final preparations for Brit attempting world-first swim across the Atlantic Ocean

A former policeman is making his final preparations for a world-first in the water.

Ben Hooper plans to become the first person to swim across the Atlantic, continent to continent.

He will spend around 12 hours a day in the water, as he takes on the approximately 2,000 mile journey.

A support boat will be on hand to keep him safe and to give him somewhere to sleep and rest, as he makes his way from Dakar in Senegal to Natal in Brazil's north-east.

ITV News' Rupert Evelyn caught up with him as he made final preparations at his local pool at Cheltenham leisure centre:

Hooper plans to set off in around two weeks, and if all goes to plan should be hitting land again four months later.

He has been piling on calories as well as training almost non-stop, as he expects he will need 10-12,000 calories each day to complete the challenge.