By RTSea
, On Friday, as the sun began to set outside of
Hemingway Marina, near
Havana, Cuba, "Diana Nyad" once began her attempt to swim the
103 miles from
Cuba to Key
West
, Florida an
accomplishment that was thwarted in early August due to a shoulder injury and an asthma attack, apparently brought on by the use of a foreign-made medication to combat the shoulder pain. With water temperatures and calm seas offering ideal conditions,
Diana, at age 62, went after a goal that has alluded her for several years.Next up was some
Saturday afternoon unwanted company: an oceanic whitetip shark. Even though Diana was using the electronic shark shields that we had also used in August, an oceanic white tip can become intensely curious - this was the one species I had the most concern over in August. Fortunately, Rob MacDonald approached the shark and it proved to be less than curious and bid a hasty retreat. As it turned out, it wasn't the big creatures that would prove to be the greatest threat as the hours wore on.
Moving into Sunday, Diana persevered, having swam for over
40 hours. But she faced two additional nights before she would reach
Florida and there was concern as to the threat of additional jellyfish encounters. Reluctantly, but giving wise consideration to her personal health and the counsel of her physicians,
Diana concluded the swim at 11:00am, completing 67 miles and once again proving herself to be a champion athlete and an inspiration to so many, young and old.". . . for each of us, isn’t life about determining your own finish line? This journey has always been about reaching your own other shore no matter what it is, and that dream continues.” - Diana Nyad, Sunday, 9/25/11 Read about Diana's swim at her
website. , Quotes sourced from her
blog., Swim photos courtesy of
www.diananyad.com.,
Read Full Story : Diana Nyad: long distance swimmer battles nature in latest swim
