After smashing the Amateur Athletic Union’s world record in 1911, Duke Kahanamoku was brought from Hawaii to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to prove his talents in another race. But Duke found his mind and body shocked by his first time swimming in an indoor pool. Though he lost this race, he would go on to win many more. “The building blocks of a waterman is humility,” says surfer Laird Hamilton.
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Video Features
TRANSCRIPT
- He was supposed to be the unofficial world champion.
Having broken the other person's record by four seconds.
- He's a fish out of water.
Almost literally.
You've got a two week journey from Hawaii to a little pool in a club in Pittsburgh, which was filled with cigar smoke, fans yelling and pointing at you.
In a sense, all of them looking at him saying prove it.
What do you got?
And by the way for the first time in your life, you're gonna swim indoors.
That's what Duke had to overcome to be the best.
(cool music) - Our blood is thin because of the warm water.
And I think when Duke jumped in, it was on shock to the body and not just to the body, but to the mind.
(water splashing) - The water was different for him.
He never swam in a pool before.
Pool water is not like salt water.
(cool music) - The mind's saying do this, and you push yourself past what the body is used to.
And everything starts locking up.
(intense music) - As Duke's body betrayed him, being unable to finish the race must have been a physical and mental shock.
The world record holder, the waterman, the pride of Hawaii can't finish a race, and had to be rescued.
- Everybody kind of snickered behind their hands, because this was supposed to be the world record holder.
- The press which has heard about this sort of Hawaiian hurricane just turns the other way, the mainland press, and goes.
This guy's just a fable.
He's not a real competitor.
He can't handle the pressure.
- Maybe in retrospect it was a good thing that he failed right away because he had to go, you know what, this is different.
- In my opinion the building blocks of a waterman is humility . As a student of the ocean that would've made him pretty resilient to failure.
Failure's not gonna stop you.
You're just gonna figure out a different route.
(upbeat music)