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SPEAKER_01: Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan, and this is Encyclopedia Wamanica. Today's Olympian was a three-time gold medalist in swimming. She was a rule breaker who overcame polio to become a world record-breaking swimmer. She continued to make waves after leaving the swimming world and dedicated her life to working with the disabled. Meet Ethelda Blybtree. Ethelda Marguerite Blybtree was born on February 27th, 1902 in Waterford, New York. Her parents, John, a funeral director, and Marguerite, separated soon after they had their second child, a son. And Marguerite was left to support her children by working at Bloomingdale's department store in New York City. At a young age, Ethelda was diagnosed with polio. Polio is an infectious disease caused by the polio virus that can affect the central nervous system and lead to paralysis. As a way to recover from the effects of polio, Ethelda began swimming. Swimming became more than a form of therapy for Ethelda. She grew to love the sport and began swimming competitively. She joined the Women's Swimming Association, or WSA, a New York swim club started by Charlotte Effie Epstein. Under WSA tutelage, Ethelda's swimming skills grew considerably. She became a dominant backstroke swimmer and went on to set records in the 100-yard backstroke. She also won amateur athletic union titles in the 440-yard and 88-yard freestyle events. Ethelda made the jump from local star to international sensation in August of 1919, when she beat veteran Australian swimming star, Fanny Durack, in an exhibition race. This would not be the last time Ethelda made a splash in the swimming world. Later that year, Ethelda made waves when she broke societal norms by swimming bare-legged. At the time, women were expected to swim while wearing heavy woolen stockings. Ethelda was arrested for nude swimming. She didn't let this controversy deter her. In 1920, the United States sent a women's swimming team to the Olympic Games in Antwerp, Belgium for the first time. Ethelda made the team. There, Ethelda set a world record of one minute 14.4 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle. Two days later, she won her first gold medal when she beat teammate Irene Guest by four seconds in the finals. Ethelda beat her previous record to set a new one at one minute 13.6 seconds with this win. A record that would stand for three years. Ethelda continued to set records. She set a world record time of four minutes 41.4 seconds in the semifinals for the 300-meter freestyle. In the finals, she broke the world record again, this time with a time of four minutes and 34 seconds flat, beating her teammate Margaret Woodbridge. Ethelda made swimming in the Olympics look easy when the conditions in Antwerp were the opposite. The city did not have an indoor or outdoor pool, so swimmers had to compete in a cold and muddy tidal estuary. Ethelda broke another record in her final event. In the four-by-100-meter relay, Ethelda swam as the anchor, leading her team to victory. The US won gold with a record-breaking finish of five minutes 11.6 seconds, defeating the reigning champions, Great Britain. Ethelda entered the Olympics as an up-and-coming swimmer and left a three-time gold medalist. She said she believed she would have won a fourth gold medal if the Olympics had an event in the women's backstroke, since she was the world record holder at the time. Afterwards, Ethelda used her new celebrity to tour the world and promote women's swimming. She continued competitive swimming and won amateur athletic union titles in multiple events. In 1922, Ethelda decided to go pro. Unfortunately for her, there was little demand for a professional swimmer to give exhibitions, and one by one, all of Ethelda's world records were broken. Ethelda's star had dimmed, and she left professional swimming to work as a swim coach and instructor. Five years later, Ethelda married a businessman named Frederick McRoberts. Together, they had a daughter named Laila before later divorcing. In 1928, the Keith Theater vaudeville circuit enlisted Ethelda to present swimming exhibitions on stage for an audience. Ethelda was set to swim on the tour for 14 weeks, but a day before it opened, the tank leaked, and the theater's carpet was destroyed. Ethelda was charged $1,000 for the damages. Luckily for her, the New York Daily News concocted a plan to help her earn the money. At the time, the New York Daily News was campaigning for more public pools in the city. The Daily News paid Ethelda to break the law and swim in the Central Park Reservoir. Ethelda was arrested and spent the night in jail. Her arrest was highly publicized and galvanized support for the construction of more city public pools. After this stunt, Ethelda kept a low profile during the 1930s. She continued teaching swimming to children and began providing physiotherapy to cerebral palsy and polio patients. Ethelda dedicated this chapter of her life to working with the disabled. In 1959, she also became a nurse. In 1967, the swimming world honored Ethelda's accomplishments, and she was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame. The following year, Ethelda left New York and moved to Florida, where she continued her work using swimming as a form of therapy for the elderly. Ethelda Blybe Tree died of cancer on May 6th, 1978, at the age of 76. All month, we're talking about Olympians. For more on why we're doing what we're doing, check out our newsletter, Womanica Weekly. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Encyclopaedia Womanica. Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator. Talk to you tomorrow. Before you go, I wanna tell you about something you might wanna check out. The University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma's Center for Social Justice and Racial Healing is teaming up with the Institute for the Healing of Memories to host A Building Bridges, Dismantling Racism for the Common Good Conference, this upcoming June 9th through 11th. This is a free virtual conference examining racism and its impact on everyday life by exploring the interrelated themes of diversity, alienation, whiteness, and community. To learn more and sign up for the conference, visit usao.edu slash building bridges. Check it out.
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