SWIMMING.

Hokitika Guardian, 9 August 1926, Page 2

SWIMMING.

[Australia & N.Z. Cable Association.) WOMAN SWIMS CHANNEL. LONDON, August G. Gertrude Ederle succeeded in swimming the Channel. ALL PREVIOUS RECORDS SMASHED. LONDON, August 7. Miss Gertrude Ederle, a young New York girl, who is a noted swimmer, has swum the English Channel in the fastest time on record. Miss Ederle swam from Capo Grislicz. in France, to Ivingsdown (near Deal) in fourteen hours and a-half. Prior to her attempt, Miss Ederle had been for some weeks in training on the French coast. She entered the water at Cape Grisnez. at- 7.9 o’clock yesterday morning. The weather was unfavourable for her, a strong south-west wind springing up within an hour, and making it rather a. rough sea. Miss Ederle, nevertheless, made excellent progress, and after six hours’ swimming she was reported to he ten miles off the French coast. The sea at this stage became still rougher, and Miss Ederle swam alongside the tug “Alsace.” with a party of friends and swimmers on board, including Miss Edorle’s. trainer. William Burgess, who swam the English Channel in the year 1911. Another smaller tug also accompanied her. The swimmer was helped by a. flood tide lasting for seven hours, which, with a strong south-wester behind in, cave her a long drift up the Channel. By 4.45 o’clock in the afternoon Miss Ederle had gone to a distance of oiily seven miles south-west of Dover, with the wind then moderating and the sea conditions improving.

By 7.33 in the evening (over twelve hours since she started out) the American girl was swimming strongly two miles from the South Sanas Lightship, between Dover and Deal, and a little later it was thought she would succeed in making a lauding at St. Margaret s Rav, but the current carried her past it.

About nine o’clock Miss Ederle was off Kingsdown (three miles to the south of Deal). There slie finally landed at 9.30 p.m. Miss Gertrude Ederle’s time for the Channel swim was fourteen hours and thirty-four minutes. The swimmer said that she was over-, joyed at her success. She had never felt inclined to give up. Slie did not fool exhausted from her effort. ' Miss Ederle’s time is easily a record, the next best time being that of the Italian swimmer Sedastiun Tiraboschi. who crossed the Channel in Ifi hovus 23 minutes on the 11th and 12th of August in 1923.

SCENE AT THE LANDING. LONDON, August 7. *■ After her Channel swim Miss Gertrude Ederle was so fit that she declined all offers of assistance when she walked out of the water. Thousands of people rushed to the foreshore when it became known that the swimmer was only two or three miles from the coast. Huge bonfires were lit, and these served as beacons lor the swimmer. Flares were also lighted, and rockets were sent up. • < The crowd breathlessly watched Miss Ederle struggling valiantly against the tide that was’ setting off the beach. When the American was two hundred yards from the shore, she raised her -arm in acknowledgement of the encouraging cheers. Then there came a roar of applause when she landed, and the whole "coastline was lit up for a great distance.

GOOD LUCK FAVOURS HER. LONDON, August 7. At the start Burgess and Miss Ederle decided to take the Italian Tirul.osclii’s course as being the shortest and the quickest. Miss Ederle managed to keep it fairly well, and she avoided covering the same area twice over, and then, by a stroke of luck, she reached tjhe English coast on the third tide. After her first five hours’ swimming, Miss Ederle rested for a quarter of an hour, and had some beef broth and cold chicken. Then her sister Margaret swam with her tor a few min utes.

The swimmer’s radio progress reports were reported to France and England by wireless from the tug, and then the news was wirelessly relayed to America. After landing, -Miss Ederle donned a cloak, and was soon rowing back to the tug, laughing and waving her hands fo the crowd as she went.

’ I Her tug was expected to go to Dover t where I'm- hope of her arrival was - abandoned. Instead of going to Dover, the tug with Miss Ederle aboard returned n across the Channel to France, and went ’’ back to Boulogne. y LONDON, August 7. Miss Ederle is only eighteen years of age; She has, however, been a swimmer since her childhood. She attempted last year to swim the ISiißlish Channel, but she was un--1 successful.