CHANNEL CONQUERED

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 9 August 1926, Page 4

CHANNEL CONQUERED

YOUNG GIRL’S FEAT.

AN AMERICAN’S SUCCESS

RECORD TIME PUT UP CAHIjjB- i’RKSS AS*SOClatk>n— copyright. LONDON, Aug- G. Miss Gertrude Ederle has succeeded iii swimming the channel. —A. and N.Z. Assn. ! MISS EDERLE ESTABLISHES A RECORD. LONDON, Any. (>. . Miss Ederle swam from Grisnez in France to Kingsdown in 194 hours — record time. —A us.-. . .X. Cable Assn. SEA CONDITIONS FOR THE ATTEMPT. MISS EDERLE’S PROGRESS DESCRIBED. LONDON, Aug. 7. Miss Gertrude Ederle. the young New York girl who swam the Channel, has been training for some weeks on the French coast. She entered the water at Cape Gri/.nez at 7.9 yesterday morning. The weather was unfavourable, a strong south-west wind springing up within, an hour and making rather a rough sea. Miss Ederle nevertheless made excellent progress, and after sixhours’ swimming was reported to be ten miles off the French coast. The sea then became rough, and Miss Ederle swam alongside the tug Alsace with a party of friends and swimmers aboard, including Miss Ederle’s trainer, Y»'m.. Burgess, who swam the Channel-in 1911. Another smaller tug also accompanied her. >'he was helped by the flood tide lasting' seven hours, which, with a strong south-wester behind it, gave her a long drift up the Channel. By 1.-15 o’clock in the afternoon Miss Ederle was seven miles south-west of Dover with the wind moderating and sea conditions improving. By 7.50 she was swimming strongly two miles from Hie ►South Sands lightship, between Dover and Deal, and a little Inter it was thought she would succeed in landing in St. Margaret’s Bay, but the current carried her past It. About nine o’clock Miss Ederle was off Kingstown (three miles south of Deal), where she landed at 9.59 p.m.

After the first live hours of swimming, Miss Ederle rested for quarter of an hour, had some beef broth and Cold chicken, then her sitser Margaret swam with her for a few minutes. The swimmer’s progress was reported to France and England by means of wireless from the tug and then wirelessly relayed to America. Miss Ederle\s time was easily a record, the next best being that of the Italian. Sebastian Tirabo&chi 1(5 hours 2.'5 minutes on the 11th and 12th August, 192:).—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. MISS ED E-RLE’S GREAT RECEPTION. Miss Ederle was .so fit that she declined all offers of assistance when she walked out of tnc water. *J h-ou,sands oi people .iusiicd to the foreshore when it became known that she was only • two or three miles from the coast. Huge bonfires were lit and these served as beacons -.or the swimmer. Flares ’Were also lighted and rockets sent up. The crowd breathlessly watched Miss .Ederle •truggliug valiantly against the 1 ide Which, was ’setting off the coast. "When two hu mi ret; yards n'ojji shore she raised an arm in acknowledgment of the encouraging cheers. Then came a roar of applause when she landed and the whole coastline was lit up -for a great distance. Miss Ederle, who is only eighteen, has been a swimmer since childhood. She- attempted last year to swim the Channel, hat was unsuccessful: After landing Miss Ederle donned a cloak and was rowed hack to the tug laughing and waving her hands to the crowd. The tug went to Dover where the hope •of her arrival had been abandoned-. At the start Burgess and Miss Ederle decided to take TiraboschiT course as the shortest and quickest. .Miss Ederle managed to keep it fairly well, avoiding covering the same area twice over and by a stroke of luck, she reached the English coast on the third tide.- —- A us.- X.Z. Cable Assn. AFTER HER SWIM. MRS EDERLE DTD NOT FEEL ’ EXHAUSTED. LONDON, Aug. 6: Miss Ederle’s time was 14 hours 34 minutes. , She said she was overjoyed at her success. She never felt inclined to give up and did not feel exhausted. She returned to Boulogne, not Dover.. —Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn. “I’M READY, SO LET’S GO.’’ IMPATIENT MISS EDERLE. LONDON, Aug. 7.

Before tlie swim, Burgess said: “IP she can last fourteen hours, Gertie will have a splendid chance of getting to England. ’ Miss Ederle said: “I’ni ready, so let’s go. I can’t wait longer to flirt with old .Mr. Channel, though he’s the only masculine I’d bother to flirt with. Somehow the Channel scras to uie to be masculine. 1 feel what I think a prizefighter must feci. I want to tight.’'— Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.