Gertrude Ederle

Hello! My name is Gertrude, but my friends called me Trudy. When I was a little girl living in New York City, my favorite thing to do was play in the water. Splish, splash! I learned to swim at our family’s summer cottage, and I loved it more than anything. Paddling my arms and kicking my feet felt like I was a happy fish gliding through the water. It was my special, happy place.

I swam so much that I got very, very good at it. I practiced every day, and soon I was swimming faster than almost anyone! I even went to a big competition called the Olympics and won shiny medals. But I had an even bigger dream. I wanted to swim across the English Channel. That’s a huge, wavy body of water between two countries, England and France. People said a girl couldn't do it, but I knew in my heart that I could try.

The day of my big swim in 1926 was chilly and grey. To keep warm, my sister and I covered me in grease—yucky but helpful! I put on my goggles and jumped into the cold, choppy water. My daddy and sister followed along in a boat, cheering, 'Go, Trudy, go!'. The waves were as big as hills, and the salty water splashed my face. I sang songs to myself and thought about the warm hot chocolate I’d have when I was done. I just kept kicking my feet and paddling my arms, hour after hour.

And then. I did it! After more than 14 hours, I felt sand under my feet. I was the first woman to ever swim the English Channel, and I was faster than all the men who had done it before me! It showed everyone that girls can be strong and brave. So if you have a big dream, just keep splashing toward it!