Diana Nyad swims the Florida Straits in her quest to be the first person cover the distance between Cuba and Key West, FL, more than 100 miles, by swimming without a shark cage. The endeavor is expected to take the 61-year-old swimmer about 60 hours, and she's expected to land on Wednesday.
CNET News reported that a day into her swim, Nyad is using electronic shark repellent. CNET News reported that the Shark Shield is intended to serve as a deterrent to the sharks approaching Nyad and that four shark specialists are on her team.
WTVM reported that Nyad, speaking of a previous attempt to make the swim, said on her website, “The one dream I didn't fulfill as an athlete, I didn't make it in 1978 from Cuba to Florida.”
According to WTVM, Nyad was a long distance swimmer whose accomplishments included being the first woman to swim around Manhattan in 1975. She’s also a world record holder for the 1979, 102.5-mile swim she made from the Bahamas to Florida. She stopped swimming competitively for more than 30 years and it wasn’t until her 60th birthday that she reconsidered her effort to swim the Florida Straits. While she will be able to consume food and water, she’s not permitted to touch the boat traveling nearby during her swim.
