Marilyn Bell
Marilyn Grace Bell Di Lascio OOnt (born October 19, 1937) is a Canadian retired long distance swimmer.[10] On September 8, 1954, at 11:07 pm, Bell started her swim across Lake Ontario from Youngstown, New York,[11] at virtually the same time as world-famous United States long-distance swimmer Florence Chadwick.[12] The offer to Chadwick had disappointed Canadian swimmers, Bell included, who had expected the CNE to hold a marathon race.The planned route straight across the lake was 51.5 kilometres (32.0 mi), but she actually had to swim much further because of strong winds and the lack of modern navigation equipment.Bell kept up her strength with Pablum, corn syrup, and lemon juice with water, along with heroic encouragement from her boat crew, including fellow swimmer Joan Cooke and her coach, Gus Ryder.[22] Offered $15,000 by the Toronto Telegram newspaper to swim the English Channel, Bell made the crossing in 14 hours, 36 minutes on July 31, 1955.[23] Bell returned to Toronto for a ticker tape parade along Bay Street to City Hall, attended by a crowd of 100,000 on August 19.[25] On August 23, 1956, she swam the Strait of Juan de Fuca off the Pacific coast, swimming from Port Angeles, Washington, to Victoria, British Columbia.[26] A cairn by Dallas Road Waterfront Trail, below Beacon Hill Park in Victoria, overlooks the bay where she completed her swim.[29][30] Another plaque is mounted on the base of a statue of a lion along Lake Shore Boulevard by the CNE Ontario Government Building.
TorontoOntarioLong-distance swimminglong distance swimmerLake OntarioEnglish ChannelStrait of Juan de FucaNew JerseyNew Paltz, New YorkscoliosisCanadian National ExhibitionHumberside CollegiateAtlantic CityAbsecon IslandAtlantic OceanYoungstown, New YorkFlorence ChadwickAlexandrine GibbToronto Daily StarlampreyPablumSunnysideamusement parkThe Ed Sullivan ShowToronto TelegramThe Globe and MailCap Gris-NezPort Angeles, WashingtonVictoria, British ColumbiaCanadian Newsmaker of the YearThe Canadian PressLou Marsh TrophyBobbie Rosenfeld AwardCanada's Sports Hall of FameOntario Sports Hall of FameOrder of OntarioNational Historic EventLake Shore BoulevardCNE Ontario Government BuildingToronto Island AirportToronto Port AuthorityCaroline DhavernasBrenda LongfellowNational Gallery of CanadaNorthern Star AwardPhil EdwardsMarshal ClelandBobby PearceBob PirieGérard CôtéTheo DuboisBarbara Ann ScottJoe KrolCliff LumsdonBob McFarlaneMarlene StreitGeorge GenereuxDoug HepburnBeth WhittallMaurice RichardLucile WheelerBarbara WagnerRobert PaulAnne HeggtveitBruce KiddDonald JacksonBill CrothersRoger JacksonGeorge HungerfordPetra BurkaElaine TannerNancy GreeneRuss JacksonBobby OrrHervé FilionPhil EspositoSandy HawleyFerguson JenkinsBobby ClarkeGuy LafleurGraham SmithKen ReadSandra PostTerry FoxSusan NattrassRick HansenWayne GretzkyGaétan BoucherBen JohnsonCarolyn WaldoKurt BrowningSilken LaumannMark TewksburyMario LemieuxMyriam BédardJacques VilleneuveDonovan BaileyLarry WalkerCaroline BrunetDaniel IgaliJamie SaléDavid PelletierCatriona Le May DoanMike WeirAdam van KoeverdenSteve NashCindy KlassenSidney CrosbyChantal PetitclercJoey VottoPatrick ChanChristine SinclairJon CornishKaillie HumphriesCarey PricePenny OleksiakMikaël KingsburyBianca AndreescuAlphonso DaviesLaurent Duvernay-TardifDamian WarnerMarie-Philip PoulinShai Gilgeous-AlexanderSummer McIntoshHilda StrikeAda Mackenzie