The 41-year-old Zhang is one of the 300 amateur swimmers who have entered the 2nd Qinghai International Crossing Race, which is slated for Saturday in Xunhua County in west China's Qinghai Province.

The route was around 800 meters, according to the event organizers.

"High altitude, low temperature and high waves are the major threats to the swimmer," said an official of the organizing committee.

Zhang, a teacher at Beijing's Sports University, made history in July 2001 as the first Chinese swimmer to cross the English Channel.

In 2000, he set a distance swimming record for China when he crossed the 123-kilometer-wide (76-mile-wide) Bohai Strait off the country's northeastern coast.