The Woman Who Swam with Sharks

·23 min·2 clips

Kim Chambers was told she had a 1% chance of walking again, then swam 30 miles through shark-infested waters.

The episode features an interview with Kim Chambers, a record-setting open water swimmer who began swimming after a life-altering accident. Host Frank Buckley introduces Chambers as someone who was told she had a 1% chance of walking again without assistance after a fall down stairs caused acute compartment syndrome in her leg. Chambers explains that she nearly faced amputation but instead embarked on a journey to relearn walking. She describes how she transitioned from rehabilitation to open water swimming, joining the Dolphin Club in San Francisco and finding a supportive community. Chambers discusses her first major swim from Alcatraz to San Francisco three years after her injury. She details her historic 2015 swim from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge, a 30-mile journey through shark-infested waters that took 17 hours and made her the first woman to complete it. Chambers emphasizes the importance of community support, crediting her crew, family, and mentors like Vito Biala and the Night Train Swimmers team. She talks about managing fear during swims, especially at night, and how breaking challenges into manageable segments helps her endure. The conversation explores how Chambers reframes failure, using her unsuccessful first attempt at the English Channel as motivation. She contrasts her previous life as a ballerina in New Zealand with her current view of her body as a 'seaworthy vessel.' Chambers draws parallels between her post-injury isolation and pandemic isolation, advising listeners to take things day by day and seek support. She addresses how marathon open water swimming is one of the few sports where men and women compete equally. The episode concludes with Buckley noting Chambers has a book in production for 2021.

As heard by us

Kim Chambers turns a devastating injury into a steady conversation about endurance, failure, and returning better prepared.

Kim Chambers's path into open-water swimming starts with a fall down the stairs, a devastating injury, and a 1% chance of walking again without help.

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Why you'd press play

You get a comeback story that reaches from a fall down the stairs to shark-infested open water and a history-making swim.

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