A SUPER-fit county councillor who successfully completed a gruelling channel swim has revealed plans for a new challenge- and this time he's aiming to cover the return leg in the water as well.

A SUPER-fit county councillor who successfully completed a gruelling channel swim has revealed plans for a new challenge- and this time he's aiming to cover the return leg in the water as well.

Determined Paul Hopfensperger has already started training for next year's two-way English Channel swim from Dover to Calais and back again - only weeks after completing the demanding if slightly more traditional crossing.

Now, he is aiming to become one of a select few to complete the swim - just 24 people in the world have conquered the 30-hour two-way journey - and raise £50,000 for charity at the same time.

On July 10, Mr Hopfensperger, who lives in Bury St Edmunds, crossed the channel in just under 14 hours, raising almost £7,000 towards his £50,000 target for CLIC Sargent, the UK's leading children's cancer charity, and the Bury-based St Nicholas Hospice.

Back on dry land, and speaking just after a training swim, the Suffolk county councillor said: “I have so far raised almost £7,000 but I am still determined to raise the original target of £50,000 so that is why I am taking on the two-way channel swim.

“I was proud to swim the channel and I had lots of support from my wife, Rebecca, son, Sebastian, and coach John Stemp .

“I think the biggest thing to stop people swimming it is not the distance, but the cold. But I was training in Felixstowe in the winter so I was prepared for it.

“When it came to swimming the channel, I just treated it like a training session. And when I first touched that sand in France, I was absolutely ecstatic.”

The idea of returning to the cold waters of the channel first came to Mr Hopfensperger after a chance meeting with the “King of the Channel” Kevin Murphy, who has swam it more times than anyone.

Mr Hopfensperger explained: “After the swim, Kevin asked me what I was going to do next.

“I had no idea but when I came back to Bury I started having withdrawal symptoms so I decided to return to training.

“I am looking forward to it and excited by the new challenge and confident as I still had some energy left after the first swim.”

Mr Hopfensperger, who hopes to swim up to 21 hours a weekend in training, will attempt to cross the channel and back in September 2008.