The Splendid Failure And Many Successes By Mercedes Gleitze

Courtesy of International Swimming Hall of Fame, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

At the 2014 Global Open Water Swimming Conference in Scotland, Dr. Ivonne Schmid introduced Mercedes Gleitze as an International Swimming Hall of Fame Honor Open Water Pioneer Swimmer.

The ISHOF induction Class of 2014 included Mercedes Gleitze (Great Britain), Dale Petranech (USA), Claudio Plit (Argentina), Judith van Berkel-de Nijs (Netherlands), George Young (Canada), and David Yudovin (USA).

Gleitze’s introductory video is shown above.

Doloranda Pember, her daughter, was instrumental in helping provide the background information on her mother for the documentary film titled Mercedes Gleitze: The Spirit of a New Age, produced by Clare Delargy of Delargy Productions.

“It’s having the willpower to endure the cold and not be disconcerted at the nearness of porpoises, dolphins and even sharks, to bear the pain of aching shoulders, knees and shins and to remain floating in the water with your arm seized with cramp and remain unperturbed when a large steamer passes too near. When you cannot have the hot drinks you’ve longed for and when an attack of sleep threatens to send you to the land of oblivion, but to have the courage to say I want to carry on,” said Gleitze in 1933.

Below is a video by British Pathé that reads “Dover. Channel Swimmers Romance. Miss Mercedes Gleitze – the well-known swimmer, weds Mr Patrick Carey.”.

Copyright @ 2014 by International Swimming Hall of Fame