MARATHON SWIMMER DIANA NYAD

As a child growing up in Fort Lauderdale, Diana Nyad was a champion pool swimmer. She swam at nearby beaches and became one of the most renowned ocean swimmers in the world. At age 24, she was the first person to swim north to south across Lake Ontario. The swim took 18 hours and 20 minutes. In 1975, 26-year-old Nyad swam around Manhattan Island in 7 hours, 57 minutes, breaking the previous record. In 1979, she swam from Bimini in the Bahamas to Florida, in just over 27 hours. Nyad initially attempted to swim from Cuba to Florida in 1978, failing after a 42-hour endeavor. She pursued the dream of a Cuba-to-Florida swim for 35 years, attempting the 110-mile swim five times. In 2013, after 52 hours, 54 minutes of swimming, Nyad prevailed. She made history as the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. As she emerged from the sea in Key West, she declared: “Never ever give up.” She was inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame in 1978, and her story continues to inspire others around the world. In 2015, Nyad published Find a Way, a memoir about her life’s journey which was adapted into the film NYAD in 2023.