Native New Yorker Fleur Sohtz became the 386th person in the world to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming. That means she swam around Manhattan, across the Catalina Channel in Southern California and across the English Channel, which connects the United Kingdom and France.
“I still tell people I pinch myself, because I think it’s fake,” Sohtz told NY1.
What You Need To Know
Native New Yorker Fleur Sohtz became the 386th person in the world to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
Sohtz trained for the major feat with her team, AGUA Masters, at Asphalt Green on the Upper East Side
She turned her Triple Crown achievement into a fundraising opportunity, donating tens of thousands of dollars in part to the “Swim for the Future Scholarship”
Out of the 300 people on the AGUA Swim Team, anywhere between 20 to 30 of them receive scholarships
The English Channel is a treacherous 21-mile swim, and is considered one of the most dangerous swims in the world.
Sohtz had to wait in England for almost 15 days due to bad weather.
“If you look at video footage from my swim, everything was a battle,” she said. “You’re getting thrown in so many different directions. If you look at the map of my swim at the end, you see what’s classically called a curve around halfway through.”
When the day finally arrived, she started her swim at 12:31 a.m. It took her 12 hours and 51 minutes to get to France.
During the swim, she was not allowed to hold on to anything or wear a watch for navigation or timing. When people on the boat following her threw her a water bottle, she had to make sure the rope was not too taut, or she could have gotten disqualified.
In addition to facing strong currents, Sohtz says she was stung by a jellyfish.
Sohtz trained for the major feat with her team, AGUA Masters, at Asphalt Green on the Upper East Side.
“I swam at the first swim meet that was ever hosted in this pool,” she said. “I joke that my big moment in 1995, I was the city champion in this pool in the 200 and 500 freestyle. And I’ve always come back here.”
She turned her Triple Crown achievement into a fundraising opportunity, donating tens of thousands of dollars in part to the “Swim for the Future Scholarship.”
“You can’t put a number on what Asphalt Green has given me,” Sohtz said. “I think there’s something special about seeing people grow up, do something that you’ve done and do it better, faster and more impactful.”
Out of the 300 people on the AGUA Swim Team, anywhere between 20 to 30 of them receive scholarships. The team is rated the number one swim team in the country, with fewer than 400 people and the number 16 swim team overall.
David Rodriguez, the head coach of AGUA, the competitive swim team at Asphalt Green, has seen the “Swim for the Future” scholarship make a huge difference in people’s lives.
“Countless athletes that have taken advantage of the scholarship have gone on to big, great things, be it Olympic trials, be it Division I scholarships” he said. “Knowing that the financial barrier is a non-issue is a game-changer for these types of athletes.”
Eighteen-year-old Yahro Pique, a swimmer on the AGUA national team, is a recipient of the scholarship, which is need-based and used for covering the costs of training and competing.
“This year I’m trying to get Olympic trials. Let’s see if I can qualify for that,” he told NY1.
Pique is taking a gap year before heading to college, and is working on getting even faster in the pool. He trains six days a week and travels all the way to Asphalt Green from Brooklyn, which is about a 45-minute commute each way. He is eyeing the 2028 and 2032 Olympics. Since he has dual citizenship, there is a chance he could compete for the Netherlands.
Rodriguez said Pique was a “late bloomer,” explaining a few years ago, Pique wasn’t considered a potential Olympic athlete, and because of the opportunities this scholarship and this program gave him, he began to flourish.
Pique is inspired by Sohtz to eventually give back to the community that gave so much to him.
“I feel like after I go to college, I definitely want to help out too and do some sort of thing to give back as well,” he said. “The team is like my second family, so if I can help give that to somebody else, that would be awesome.”
As for Sohtz, the next open water swim she hopes to complete is the Strait of Gibraltar. She is continuing her training with AGUA Masters.