Famed Athlete Diana Nyad to Lead EverWalk Treks in Key West

KEY WEST, Fla. — Diana Nyad, who completed an epic swim from Havana, Cuba, to Key West, Florida, in 2013, is to be back in the island city to lead an April 1-5 walking initiative and stage a one-woman show about her life and record-setting athletic feat.

At age 64, on her fifth attempt, Nyad became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. She accomplished the nearly 111-mile ocean crossing in 52 hours and 54 minutes.

Each morning during the Key West event, Nyad and her expedition leader, Bonnie Stoll, are to lead participants on a 10-mile trek around the island where they trained for the marathon swim.

Walkers are to begin at 9 a.m. at Key West’s Southernmost Point marker, located at the intersection of Whitehead and South streets, and stop by a number of locales connected to the swim.

They might even take a dip together at Smathers Beach, where Nyad came triumphantly ashore. Nearby is a bronze plaque installed by the City of Key West to commemorate her achievement.

Following the walk, participants can lunch with Nyad and Stoll at a private Key West home.

The Key West week is a facet of Nyad and Stoll’s EverWalk program, a nationwide initiative designed to inspire Americans to make walking a healthy part of their daily lives.

Nyad and Stoll encourage Florida Keys visitors and residents to join walkers from around the country for all or part of each day’s route. Cost is $20 per person per day and includes lunch and an EverWalk “swag bag.” Walkers can register to participate for one or more days at eventbrite.com/e/everwalk-key-west-habitat-for-humanity-tickets-51907349279.

The week’s highlights include “The Courage to Fail, An Evening of Storytelling with Diana Nyad” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 3, at The Studios of Key West, 533 Eaton St. Both dramatic and wryly funny, Nyad’s one-woman show offers an intensely personal look at her remarkable life and inspirational Havana-to-Key-West swim.

General admission tickets are $44 per person and can be purchased at tskw.org. Proceeds from the show benefit The Studios of Key West. 

Event information: https://everwalk.com/

Key West visitor information: fla-keys.com/keywest or 1-800-LAST-KEY

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Nya, right, with her expedition leader, Bonnie Stoll.

Nya, right, with her expedition leader, Bonnie Stoll.

Diana Nyad completed an epic swim from Havana, Cuba, to Key West, Florida, in 2013.

Diana Nyad completed an epic swim from Havana, Cuba, to Key West, Florida, in 2013.

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