Katie Benoit (nee Kathrin Raymond) is a German-born police officer now living in Colorado who used her swimming skills to make a heroic save when a massive hail storm flooded an intersection near the Citadel Mall in Colorado Springs.

When a number of people were in danger, Benoit selflessly entered the rising, freezing waters and helped rescue people from their flooding cars.

Her training for the English Channel surely helped her acclimatize during this emergency situation. “I currently train with Joe Bakel and Elizabeth Alberton in local mountain lakes…[where] I am learning to adapt to temperatures in the lower 50°s (10°C+).”

Her ability to adapt and overcome the circumstances around her also came in handy during her swim under the guidance of Mike Oram. “When we hit the French coast, we were about a kilometer from the coast and the tide was really starting to pull me out and they told me to sprint against the tide and I just didn’t think it was something I could do 12 hours into a swim.”

She eventually sprinted against the tide to complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming with a 13 hour 13 minute crossing. Combined with her 10 hour 41 minute crossing of the Catalina Channel and 8 hour 44 minute circumnavigation of Manhattan Island, both accomplished in 2010, has enabled her to become the 56th person in history to join the Triple Crown club.

Copyright © 2012 by World Open Water Swimming Association