Saudi dentist and licensed endurance swimmer, Dr Mariam Saleh Bin Laden, has made history this week by becoming the primary Arab woman to swim across the Red Sea between Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
In accordance with Scoop Empire, the Saudi swimmer accomplished the journey inside 4 hours, crossing nine kilometres of open sea, despite the presence of sharks within the Red Sea. She reportedly used a tool which might keep sharks at bay by three metres, although at one point the device is alleged to have malfunctioned.
“It was a dream to swim from Saudi to Egypt. And dreams come true.”
Watch Mariam’s story 👇🏼@MariamBinladen pic.twitter.com/9SBVRMWJzt
— Lewis Pugh (@LewisPugh) October 13, 2022
Bin Laden was joined by British-South African endurance swimmer and UN Patron of the Oceans, Lewis Pugh, who wanted to spotlight the vulnerability of coral reefs ahead of the COP27 meeting that’s as a result of happen in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, next month. The pair overcame warm sea temperatures, very salty water and long hours of sun exposure, reported the BBC.
“I wanted the coral swim to incorporate swimmers from across the region. I invited Mariam to affix me on the primary section because she is a passionate humanitarian and has pioneered endurance swimming in Saudi Arabia,” Pugh said.
Last week after completing the journey, Pugh said Mariam became the primary Arab, Saudi and woman to swim from the dominion to Egypt.
Today, Dr Mariam Saleh Bin Laden became the first Arab, the first Saudi and the first woman to swim from Saudi Arabia to Egypt. 🇸🇦🏊♀️🇪🇬 (1/3) pic.twitter.com/KvZwW1nF2f
— Lewis Pugh (@LewisPugh) October 12, 2022
Taking to Instagram, Mariam said: “I’m very grateful to be the primary Saudi, the primary Arab and the primary women to swim from Saudi Arabia to Egypt.. I never thought I’d do that swim with no shark cage. But putting ourselves out of our comfort zones is what makes us stronger.”
“It is usually been a dream of mine to swim from Saudi Arabia to Egypt. Today I finally did it. I’m so grateful to have been introduced to @lewis.pugh . After I heard about his plan to swim across the Red Sea, I needed to take this chance to affix him,” she added.
In 2016, Mariam became the primary Saudi woman to swim across the English Channel, which she achieved in 11 hours and 41 minutes. She took on the challenge as a part of a series of endurance challenges to lift awareness of the plight of orphan children from Syria. Earlier that 12 months she set a recent world record as the primary woman to officially swim 101 miles of the River Thames.
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