Gertrude Ederle

Hello, my name is Gertrude, but everyone calls me Trudy. I grew up in a big, busy place called New York City. My dad, Henry, owned a butcher shop, but my favorite thing to do was go to the water with him. He taught me how to swim, and I fell in love with it. Splish, splash. I felt like a little fish. When I was just five years old, I got sick with the measles. It made my hearing a little fuzzy, like listening to sounds through cotton balls. But you know what? It made me love swimming even more. When I put my head underwater, everything was quiet and peaceful. It was my own special world where I could just focus on gliding through the cool water. It was my happy place.

The more I swam, the faster I got. It was so much fun to race. I joined a swim team and practiced every single day. I would kick my legs and pull my arms through the water for hours. My coach said, 'Trudy, you have a powerful kick.'. I wanted to be the best swimmer in the world. All that hard work paid off. In 1924, I got to travel all the way across the ocean to a beautiful city called Paris, in France, for the Olympics. Can you imagine that? It was the biggest sports game in the whole world. My team and I won a shiny gold medal in a relay race. I also won two bronze medals all by myself. Standing on that podium with a medal around my neck was the best feeling ever. I felt so proud that I had worked hard to make my dream come true.

After the Olympics, I dreamed of something even bigger. I wanted to be the first woman ever to swim across the English Channel. It's a huge stretch of cold, choppy water between England and France. Many people said a woman wasn’t strong enough, but I said, 'Watch me.'. My first try was in 1925. The water was stormy, and I got so tired that my coach had to pull me out. I was disappointed, but I wasn't going to quit. I told my dad, 'I'll be back next year.'. And I was. On August 6, 1926, I stood on the shore of France, ready to try again. This time, I was determined. The waves were as big as hills, and the salty water stung my eyes. It was so, so cold. But I just kept thinking about my goal. My dad and my sister, Margaret, followed me in a boat, cheering me on. 'You can do it, Trudy.' they shouted over the wind. Seeing them gave me strength. I sang songs in my head to keep a rhythm and just kept kicking and pulling, even when my arms and legs felt like jelly. I just kept swimming, one stroke at a time, toward the shore of England.

After more than fourteen hours of swimming, I felt sand under my feet. I had made it. I had reached England. I was so tired but so happy. And guess what? I didn't just become the first woman to swim the Channel, I swam it faster than any man had ever done before. I beat the record by almost two hours. When I went back home to New York City, there was a giant parade just for me. It felt like the whole city was cheering. I learned that if you have a big dream, you have to work hard for it. Even if you don't make it on the first try, just keep splashing toward your goal. You might just surprise everyone, including yourself.