September 26, 2011
MIAMI (AFP) - Veteran US endurance swimmer Diana Nyad ended her historic attempt to cross the shark-infested waters from Cuba to Florida on Sunday after suffering dangerous jellyfish stings.
The 62-year-old, who was seeking to become the first person to make the 103-mile (165-kilometer) swim across the Florida Straits without a shark cage, had spent more than 40 hours in the water and completed 67 nautical miles before ending her bid at 11:00 am (1500 GMT).
And yet it wasn't the threat of the predators that did her in but two Portuguese men-of-war -- jellyfish whose stings had released potentially harmful toxins into Nyad's body.
"The medical team said I should not go another two nights in the water and risk additional likely man-of-war stings which could have a long-term cumulative effect on my body," Nyad said from the water before climbing aboard an escort vessel, her support team wrote on her website diananyad.com.
"But for each of us, isn't life about determining your own finish line?" she was quoted as saying.
"This journey has always been about reaching your own other shore no matter what it is, and that dream continues."
Earlier on Sunday her team said Nyad had been weakened by a series of painful jellyfish stings after starting her journey on Friday night.
Nyad was struck in the face and eyes late Saturday by what her team said was a "presumed jellyfish," which left her face swollen and in pain.
She received treatment Saturday night and resumed her swimming, accompanied by three shark divers, her support team wrote early Sunday in a blog post.
Because she was not out of the water to rest, an independent observer from the International Swim Federation said the endurance athlete could continue her bid for a swim record.
"Since Diana stopped to receive medical treatment, and continued at the EXACT spot where she stopped, the rules say she is now going for a record staged swim rather than a non-stop swim," her team said early Sunday.
The veteran swimmer had been given prednisone, an anti-inflammatory drug, along with oxygen and other medication during her journey.
Nyad, who had completed more than two-thirds of the journey before pulling out, was undertaking the record attempt with a range of equipment to try to keep her safe from sharks.
On Saturday, barracudas and a shark were spotted near her but not too close for comfort, her entourage said on Twitter.
"Around 1pm -- and don't everybody get excited here -- an Oceanic white tipped shark was spotted near Diana in the midst of the three-boat flotilla," it said.
"Diana is deeply committed to safety of these extraordinary animals."
One of Nyad's safety divers approached the shark, and they faced off within 10 feet (three meters) of one another before the animal swam away, the team said.
After initial jellyfish stings slowed her down early on, Nyad seemed to gain strength on Saturday, reducing her rest times and increasing her stroke speed amid surprisingly calm conditions.
"You're doing better. I can see it," Bonnie Stoll, her chief handler, was quoted as saying on Nyad's blog.
On Saturday afternoon, facing a second straight night in the water, she was served a homemade chicken soup concoction prepared by the captain of one of the escort vessels, and the soup seemed to lift her spirits, the team said.
Nyad failed on two previous bids, in 1978 and again last month, in her quest to swim across the treacherous Florida Straits from Havana to Key West, Florida.
Shoulder pain, asthma and ocean swells hobbled Nyad's August attempt.
Nyad set an open sea record by swimming from the Bahamas to the Florida Keys -- a journey that is the same distance as the Cuba-Florida swim, but a feat she described as much less dangerous.
The swimmer set a record for circling the island of Manhattan at age 50, clocking in at seven hours and 57 minutes.
