Warning: This post contains spoilers for Young Woman and the Sea

Summary

• Trudy Ederle swims across the English Channel, facing challenges and sabotage from her coach.
• The film adaptation of Ederle's story is fairly accurate but embellishes some details.
• Ederle's determination and achievements highlight the obstacles faced by women in sports.

Young Woman and the Sea ends with a triumphant swim across the English Channel for Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle. The film is based on Ederle’s true story, and follows her from childhood through both of her attempts at crossing the English Channel, and the immediate aftermath of such a feat. Young Woman and the Sea reviews have been mostly positive, with praise going to Daisy Ridley’s performance as Trudy. After Jabez Wolffe crushes seasick pills into Trudy’s tea, she slows down and has to be picked up out of the water.

Frustrated with what happened, Trudy goes along with the plan to send her back to New York, but jumps out of the ship to Bill Burgess, who had crossed the English Channel years prior, her father Henry and sister Meg. Trudy no longer wanted to work with Wolffe, so she trained with Burgess. Not long after, Trudy makes her second attempt to swim across the English Channel. And though she’s stung by jellyfish and gets lost for a while in the shallows, Trudy finally makes it to England, achieving her goal and becoming the first woman to accomplish the swim.

How Young Woman & The Sea's Ending Compares To The True Story

There are a few adjustments made for the film adaptation

Young Woman and the Sea is fairly accurate to the true story of Trudy Ederle. As a film, of course, it embellishes some of the facts, including Wolffe’s sabotage of Trudy’s first attempt at crossing the English Channel. There was speculation that Wolffe resented Trudy and didn’t want to see her goals realized. Trudy did, in fact, believe that he’d poisoned her tea, so there’s that. As for other aspects of Trudy’s life and swimming career, Young Woman and the Sea made some adjustments while remaining loyal to the story.

For example, Trudy’s adjusted swimsuit was not done by her sister; it was designed by Trudy herself. In the film, Trudy doesn’t wait a whole year before attempting to cross the English Channel once more. She’s back in the water after a few weeks following her first attempt. In reality, Trudy returned to New York to train with Bill Burgess before returning to in 1926. Other than the minute details, however, Young Woman and the Sea respects Trudy’s life and career overall, portraying the biggest moments from her swimming career without altering too much of the real story.

Why Jabez Wolffe Tried To Sabotage Trudy's English Channel Swim

Wolffe was deeply resentful despite coaching Trudy

Jabez Wolffe had tried to swim across the English Channel 22 times, but each attempt ended in failure. On certain occasions, Wolffe was only a mile or yards away from reaching his goal, but something would happen — like the winds changing — that would stand in his way of reaching shore. Wolffe’s attempts spanned years, from 1906-1914. So, upon learning that Trudy Ederle wanted to swim across the English Channel, he likely sensed her determination to accomplish such a feat and resented the fact that she could probably do it when he never could.

What Wolffe didn’t realize was that his resentment and sabotage made him look even worse as a coach.

Wolffe was never a true er of Trudy’s plans to swim the English Channel. He saw her as competition, and he did whatever he could to dissuade her from taking to the sea — verbally and physically. Wolffe knew that if Trudy succeeded (which he feared she would), he would become a laughingstock, an embarrassment. The swimmer saw Trudy’s accomplishments, especially as a woman, as inferior, despite the fact that she was able to achieve something he was never able to do. What Wolffe didn’t realize was that his resentment and sabotage made him look even worse as a coach.

What Happened To Trudy Ederle After Swimming The English Channel

Trudy Ederle largely kept a low-profile in her later years

Young Woman and the Sea depicts Trudy Ederle as a hero for New York City, and they treated her as such after she successfully swam across the English Channel. After that, Trudy went on to have a brief career in Hollywood, appearing as herself in films such as Swim Girl, Swim. Ederle also had a brief stint doing vaudeville. The 1930s brought hardship, as Trudy fell down a flight of stairs and hurt her spine. It took her a while to recover, and she became mostly deaf in the 1940s.

Trudy was not used to the attention that popularity gave her after her record-breaking swim, and she reportedly suffered a nervous breakdown (via Outside). Despite breaking records and barriers for women in sports, Ederle no longer swam competitively and lived a relatively quiet life for the remainder of her days. She spent the rest of her life teaching deaf children how to swim, and became an icon for women in sports. In addition to breaking records, Ederle was a trailblazer, opening doors for women in sports to compete and be taken more seriously.

Trudy Ederle never married or had children.

Trudy Ederle Died In 2003 At The Age Of 98

Trudy lived to be 98 years old, but sadly ed away in November 2003. Prior to her death, Ederle was living in an elderly home. Following her death, Trudy was interred at Woodlawn Cemetery. The first time a fictionalized of her swimming career was in the BBC Radio play, called The Great Swim, in 2010. Young Woman and the Sea knows how ionate Ederle was about swimming and included a scene of Ridley quietly swimming during the film’s credits.

What Happened To Bill Burgess After Young Woman & The Sea's Ending

Bill Burgess went on to coach many more swimmers

After Trudy Ederle successfully swam across the English Channel, Bill Burgess continued to train swimmers who wanted to cross the English Channel until at least 1934. He lived in for a long time, but was captured by Nazis in 1941, though he was thankfully released from a prison camp not long after. Burgess died in 1950 at the age of 78. While he accomplished a lot during his lifetime, and managed to cross the English Channel himself in 1911, Burgess is well-known for having been a coach to other long-distance swimmers and remained well-respected throughout his life.

The Real Meaning Of Young Woman & The Sea

Young Woman and the Sea is an uplifting story, an old-fashioned and inspirational sports drama that underscores what can be achieved when one puts their mind to something. Crucially, the biopic highlights how Trudy Ederle didn’t want to swim the English Channel for fame or for money. Despite the publicity she garnered as the first woman to successfully attempt to swim the Channel, Young Woman and the Sea showcases that she did it for herself and to prove that women should not be underestimated when it came to sports.

Ederle was dedicated and determined to swim the English Channel despite the sexism and obstacles she faced. Young Woman and the Sea reveals how there will always be naysayers who attempt to stand in one’s way of achieving one’s goal, but no matter what that is — be it parents, sexism, jealous athletes, etc. — it shouldn’t stop anyone from doing what they want to do. The biopic spotlights Ederle’s uphill battle, and even the limitations people assumed she would have because of the measles, and the courage it took to be successful in her endeavors.