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DAKAR, Senegal -- Former British police officer Ben Hooper hopes to make history by swimming every mile of the Atlantic Ocean from Africa to South America. After more than three years of preparation, he set off on Sunday.The 38-year-old walked down a beach in Dakar and into the Atlantic Ocean, launching a swim for 1,635 nautical miles, or nearly 2,000 land miles (3,200 kilometers), from Senegal to Brazil.This is for my daughter, said Hooper, who filled a water bottle with sand to keep for the 8-year-old who he said inspired the swim. Its been a long time coming.Flanked by two boats and a crew of less than a dozen, Hooper aims to be the first person to swim every mile of the Atlantic Ocean from continent to continent, stepping on land again in March.He says he trained three years as he gathered a crew for the Big Blue, the main boat on which he will eat and sleep when he is not swimming for about eight hours each day through waters infested with sharks and jellyfish.Water has loomed large in his life.I nearly drowned when I was 5 in a swimming pool in Belgium, Hooper told The Associated Press. Ever since ... Ive had this affinity with water. It was the calmest Ive ever felt.Hooper said he had a bout of depression about 3 1/2 years ago and decided to turn his life around for his daughter. So he looked to water.Nobody had swum a full ocean. More people have landed on the moon than have tried this, so at that point I thought maybe this is my calling, said Hooper. If I can inspire myself, other people and raise money for charity, why not do it?Inspired by British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Hooper said he hopes to motivate others, especially children, to swim.Funding for the expedition has taken time, and the launch was set back several times as various crew members dropped out and the boats faced mechanical issues.This will be a major achievement overall, said Nigel Taylor-Schofield, the captain of Big Blue. If anybody can accomplish this, it would be Ben. He is very determined.The crew, including a paramedic, will track the miles, and Hooper has said if he gets to Brazil with the help of currents, he will swim until he fulfills the full Atlantic mileage.The challenges, be it marine life, dehydration, and more, will be vast, but Hooper says his biggest fear is letting the team and his daughter down. Hell listen to a playlist on customized earphones that he said will include eurotrash music, Eminem and The Scripts Hall of Fame. Hooper will also wear various gear that helps camouflage him from sharks, and a tracking device so supporters can follow his nearly five-month swim online.Around 10:30 a.m. on the beach outside the Monaco Plage hotel in Dakar, Hooper and the crew were ready.See you in Brazil, he said, before eventually swimming off into the sunlit waters toward his goal.---http://www.swimthebigblue.com/--Follow Carley Petesch on Twitter at www.twitter.com/carleypetesch Steven Souza Jersey . With the short-handed Warriors needing help from someone -- anyone -- to stop a three-game skid, ONeal returned from right knee and groin injuries that had sidelined him for four games and put up season highs with 18 points and eight rebounds. It was just enough to help lift Golden State to a 102-101 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. 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LONDON -- The English Premier League has sold its television rights in China for $700 million in its biggest-ever overseas sale, a person familiar with the deal said on Thursday.Online video streaming service PPTV sealed a three-year deal to broadcast all 380 matches each season across China from 2019-20, the person told The Associated Press.The person spoke on condition of anonymity because details of the negotiations are confidential with PPTV, a media division of Chinas Suning retail group which also owns Italian club Inter Milan.PPTVs 2019-2022 deal is worth more than 10 times the current contract with Super Sports Media Group, which is paying around $20 million a season. PPTV also has the live rights for games from Spains La Liga in China.The bumper Premier League agreement is a sign of the anticipated enduring attraction of the worlds richest soccer competition just as there has been discussion in England about declining domestic ratings for games.The Premier League has just started a new TV rights cycle, generating around 8.3 billion pounds ($10 billion) from broadcasters through 2019, with more than 5.1 billion pounds coming from English payy-tv networks.ddddddddddddThe rights through 2022 have already been sold in the United States to NBC, which signed a $1 billion, six-year deal. The windfall from PPTV eclipses NBCs contract in the latest hefty investment in soccer by China.President Xi Jinping has made improving Chinese soccer a priority, from the grassroots to the international team. Chinese businessmen have responded to the presidents call by elevating the countrys influence in global soccer.Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa, and Wolverhampton Wanderers have received investment from China over the last year.In Italy, Inters rival, AC Milan, is also set to fall under Chinese ownership next month when Sino-Europe Sports completes its takeover from three-time former premier and billionaire businessman Silvio Berlusconi.China is also looking to host the World Cup for the first time after Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group signed up as a FIFA sponsor until 2030.---Rob Harris is at www.twitter.com/RobHarris and www.facebook.com/RobHarrisReports ' ' '