I'm Oprah Winfrey. Welcome to Super Soul Conversations, the podcast. I believe that one of

the most valuable gifts you can give yourself is time, taking time to be more fully present.

Your journey to become more inspired and connected to the deeper world around us starts right

now.

Like so many of you, I watched Diana Niyad's first tentative steps, returning to land, after

more than two days at sea. I watched with wonder and amazement. Who is this woman? And

how did she do that? What does it take to swim? 110 miles straight.

It was a dream that began when Diana was just five years old. Her father told her that

her last name Niyad meant champion swimmer in Greek, and that would become her clarion

call. She began swimming competitively in school, driven and focused, sometimes practicing

more than six hours a day. In 1978, when she was only 28, Diana attempted the 110 mile

marathon for the first time, but rough seas forced her to quit. A year later, after setting

another world record, she announced she was done. For more than 30 years, she did not

swim a lap. Instead, she forged a new path with a career in sports journalism. But in

2007, after her mother died, Diana began re-evaluating her life, and that unfinished business

of the Cuba swim began tapping her on the shoulder. So at 60, Diana returned to the

water, more fiercely determined than ever. She tried another three times before finally,

in her fifth grueling attempt against all odds, on September 2, 2013. Diana Niyad stood

victorious. So when I first heard you finished, I wanted to talk to immediately. It just filled

me up because I just became a swimmer a couple years ago, and not that good at it. Just,

you know, okay, I couldn't even imagine what it takes to do something for 53 hours straight.

And I recognized, as I know you do, that you had to transcend your humaneness and go beyond

...