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Gertrude Ederle Biography
Swimmer
American Gertrude Ederle was the first woman to swim across the English Channel, on 6 August 1926. Five men had performed the feat previously, but Ederle's time of 14 hours and 31 minutes broke the record by nearly two hours. The feat earned her lasting fame and a ticker-tape parade when she returned to New York City. Ederle also won a gold and two bronze medals in swimming at the 1924 Olympics.
Extra credit: Ederle played herself in the 1927 movie Swim Girl, Swim... Most sources list her birth year as 1906, but biographer David Adler told Who2 that a family member says she was actually born in 1905.
Other "first women" in 20th-century sports include tennis star Althea Gibson, goalie Manon Rheaume and drag racer Shirley Muldowney.
Blog posts mentioning Gertrude Ederle:
Four Good Links
Gertrude Ederle Obituary
Recap of her career from the Boston Globe
Ederle Crosses the Channel
1999 reminiscence from the St. Petersburg Times; nice detail on the swim
Gertrude Ederle
Brief portrait, with a photo
A Look at Gertrude Ederle
Nice profile of her achievement, with some photos
Vital Stats
Birth
Birthplace
Death
30 November 2003
(age 98)
Best Known As
The first woman to swim the English Channel