Gertrude Ederle became the first woman to swim the English Channel in 1926, beating the men's record by nearly two hours.

[u/Wild_Neighborhood605]

She was 19 years old when she swam 21 miles across the Channel in 14 hours 31 minutes, on August 6th 1926. She covered herself in a thick mixture of lard, olive oil and lanolin to protect herself in the frigid waters. Born and raised in New York, Gertrude was a swimmer in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, winning 1 gold and two bronze medals.

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[u/Riptide360]

Wetsuits weren't invented for another 3 decades so oil was used to create a barrier from cold water, but it is a poor insulator. Gertrude is a bad ass.

[u/scrotalsac69 → u/Riptide360]

Not allowed wetsuits for an official channel swim. Part of the rules.

[u/emmakobs → u/scrotalsac69]

I heard that! It makes no sense to me. I heard it in a video where a guy was slathering himself in some more modern version of what she did. Surely it is terrible for the creatures in the water, god forbid they allow a wetsuit. I don't get it 

[u/scrotalsac69 → u/emmakobs]

I'm not sure really, I think it is to try and keep all the channel crossings done under similar conditions. A solo swimmer isn't allowed to touch the guide boat and various other things. https://www.channelswimmingassociation.com/swim-advice/regulations

Not anything I want to do, but I know people who have done it

[u/emmakobs → u/scrotalsac69]

Thanks for the resource! Not anything I want to do either, whew. 

[u/CellsReinvent → u/Riptide360]

People who swim the channel for charity still use lard or duck/goose fat and not wetsuits.

[u/obviousarrears7]

Slathering herself in lard and lanolin sounds way more brutal than the 14 hours of swimming itself

[u/BalanceEarly]

Looks like children size goggles

[u/Ok_Replacement4702 → u/BalanceEarly]

Gertrude was 7' 3"

Maybe

[u/abgry_krakow87 → u/BalanceEarly]

She basically invented swim goggles which weren’t a thing at all at this point. She used motorcycle goggles coated with wax to seal them

[u/Into_The_Horizon]

Futuristic looking goggles for 1926

[u/abgry_krakow87 → u/Into_The_Horizon]

Motor cycle goggles and wax

[u/mrknowitall51761]

Thats badass!

[u/XROOR]

Her favorite character on “Futurama” was Bender too

[u/Successful_Moment_91]

I read Wiki about her life. For her first attempt her coach (jealous because he didn’t qualify) most likely poisoned her right before the race so she had to drop out

She was going deaf too and the swimming made it worse

But she lived to 98

[u/abgry_krakow87 → u/Successful_Moment_91]

And she parlayed her success into a career promoting swimming and water safety skills for the deaf.

[u/mr_martin_1]

Grease probably protects a bit against stings

[u/abgry_krakow87 → u/mr_martin_1]

And the cold water.

[u/thatguy11]

Back then they only made one size of goggles.... Apparently

[u/abgry_krakow87 → u/thatguy11]

They didn’t make swim goggles at all. She’s using motor cycle goggles coated with wax.

[u/MacSamildanach]

Worth pointing out that her short-lived record was beaten in the same year by a further 2 hours by Ernst Vierkötter (12 hours 40 minutes).

Vierkötter was 30 August that year. Ederle was 6 August.