Gertrude Ederle
Article
August 13, 2022
Gertrude Caroline Ederle (born October 23, 1905, died November 30, 2003) was an American swimmer. In 1926 she became the first woman to swim across the English Channel. During the 1924 Olympics in Paris, she helped win gold in the 4 × 100 m freestyle. In addition, she won two individual bronze medals in the 100 meters and 400 meters freestyle. When she was the first woman to swim across the English Channel, she started from Cap Gris-Nez in France at 07.05 on the morning of 6 August 1926. 14 hours and 30 minutes later she came ashore at Kingsdown in England. The record stood until Florence Chadwick swam across the Channel in 13 hours and 20 minutes in 1950. Only five men had managed to swim across the channel before Ederle. The best time had been 16 hours and 33 minutes When Ederle returned to the United States, she was welcomed by a cheering crowd in New York. In 2003, she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.