Lynne Cox

In 1972 at age 15 and again in 1973 at 16, Lynne Cox broke the men's and women's world records for swimming the English Channel. At age 17, she shattered the men's world records for swimming the Catalina Channel.

After that, Cox wanted to complete ever-more challenging swims that required greater creativity and allowed her to explore and understand the world a little better. This exploration would, in turn, enable her to share her discoveries with the rest of the world.

In 1975 Lynne became the first woman to swim across Cook Straits. During the crossing between the islands of New Zealand, she realized a long-distance swim could be much more than an athletic challenge, it could be a vehicle for bridging the distance between nations. During the next 12 years she swam across the highest, coldest and most difficult waterways in the world - swims no one had ever attempted - including Strait of Magellan, reputedly the most treacherous 3 mile stretch of water in the world, and the shark infested Cape of Good Hope in Africa.

The skills and knowledge she gained on this journey gave her the courage to attempt a swim across the Bering Strait. This swim meant more to her (and to the world) than all the others because it physically, culturally and politically bridged the distance between the United States and Soviet Union during the beginning of the end of the Cold War.  The journey opened up the US-Soviet border for the first time in 48 years.

Since the Bering Strait swim, Lynne has made many never-done-before swims that have helped to unite humanity. In 2002, she swam to Antarctica, an event that was covered by 60 Minutes II. Swimming to Antarctica, a book about the achievement and 23 years in the making, was released in 2004.