Chilean swimmer becomes the first person to swim 1.5 MILES through the near-freezing Antarctic Ocean

For many of us, it takes a few minutes to muster up the courage to dive into the water at the local swimming pool.

But one brave swimmer has earned the title of ‘Ice Mermaid’ after swimming a whopping 1.5 miles in nearly icy water.

Barbara Hernandez, a swimmer from Chile, became the first person to go the distance in the Antarctic Ocean, where the water temperature is only 2°C.

The 37-year-old completed the impressive feat in just 45 minutes and 30 seconds on February 5.

And while you might imagine she was outfitted with protective gear while swimming, amazingly, she just donned a regular swimsuit, goggles, a swim cap, and earplugs.

Speak against AFPMrs. Hernandez said, “My greatest rival is fear… not (other) people.

“Fear of failure, of abandoning the people who rely on me, are my greatest opponents.”

The swim started from a Chilean naval vessel near Greenwich Island in Antarctica and covered a distance about the same length as 25 football fields.

About 20 minutes into the swim, Ms. Hernandez began to feel the first signs of hypothermia.

“I felt something cold go through my heart,” she said.

While this symptom would cause most people to hurriedly stop swimming, Ms. Hernandez persevered and eventually reached her terminus of a buoy in the middle of the ocean.

“It was super hard swimming,” she said.

‘After completing the first mile I felt I would never reach the buoy… I felt… my arms were getting heavier and heavier.

“But I didn’t focus on that.”

After reaching the buoy, Ms. Hernandez was taken straight to a clinic aboard the Janequeo naval vessel, where doctors took her body temperature as low as 27°C.

This is significantly lower than the average human body temperature of 98.6 F (37 C).

Despite this, she never lost consciousness and was fully healthy again in just two hours.

Currently, her record swimming has been recognized first by the International Winter Swimming Association, but she hopes it will soon be certified by the Guinness World Records as well.

In addition to helping showcase her swimming talents, Ms. Hernandez hopes her swimming will raise awareness of the impacts of climate change in Antarctica.

Last week, a study from the National Snow and Ice Data Center revealed that Antarctic sea ice levels are now at the lowest levels on record, with just 737,000 square miles now surrounding its contents.

“What scares me is that Antarctica continues to melt. That really scares me,” Mrs. Hernandez said.

“When I was swimming, that was one of the things I thought about. My legs hurt, but I felt strong.

‘I thought: this is not just for me, this is the goal we wanted to make visible. That gives you a boost.’

She will then attempt to complete the Oceans Seven Marathon, in which she will swim through seven channels or straits around the world.