Olsson has a raft of Paralympic, European and world swimming titles to his name, as well as 59 world records, but his win in Alcatraz is up there with the best of them, particularly as he is the first person to enter the open water race without functioning legs.

The race takes in 2.6 kilometres of tough waters off California, and the Swede romped to victory in 24min 32sec over Kyle Winters to earn him the nickname "the Swedish torpedo".

It was the ninth edition of the race, and it cements the 45-year-old's position as a household name in his home country, having been voted the best athlete with a disability three times previously.

The Paralympian, whose motto is "believe in yourself, nothing is impossible", has travelled the world to tell his remarkable story, which saw him paralysed from the waist down in the late 1990s after having been a promising ice hockey player and swimmer.

The "Iron Man", as he is also known in Sweden, has won three Paralympic gold medals across two Paralympic Games - Beijing 2008 and Athens 2004, as well as two World Championship gold medals in Durban 2006.

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