I would add to this that Nyad is hardly alone. Please see this:

https://www.outsideonline.com/2390652/marathon-swimmer-pat-gallant-charette

She is an outlier (and sometimes, Sean, I wonder whether the sexual abuse by her trainer was one of her motivators to succeed, as happens to many of us including myself), but she isn't the only one. There's a temptation to see Nyad as The Only One. No. She isn't. In fact, the older I get, the more I find myself in extraordinary company, as supergeezers abound out there. We only need to notice them. (I may be a geezer, not quite super, but damned close).