Diana Nyad

At the age of 64, in her fifth attempt, Diana Nyad fulfilled her lifelong dream of swimming the 110 miles from Cuba to Florida on September 2, 2013. Upon completing her grueling 53-hour journey, Nyad had three messages for the world: “One is we should never ever give up. Two is you are never too old to chase your dreams. And three is it looks like a solitary sport but it takes a team.” In the 1970s, Nyad was the greatest long-distance swimmer in the world. Her world records include circling Manhattan Island and crossing the 102.5 miles between the Bahamas and Florida, and have led to inductions to many halls of fame, such as the International Women’s Sports Hall of Fame. As a prominent sports broadcaster, Nyad filed reports for NPR, ABC Sports, Fox Sports and the New York Times.