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TORI MCCLURE
THE FIRST WOMAN TO ROW ACROSS THE ATLANTIC
Tori Murden-McClure, the first woman and the first American to row an ocean solo.
Murden-McClure made headlines in late 1999 when she crossed the Atlantic Ocean from east to west without aid of wind, motor or sail and without support or escort. She departed from the Canary Islands in her vessel the American Pearl in September, heading for Guadeloupe.
Her 85-day, nearly 3,000-mile journey was followed by hundreds of schoolchildren across the nation through the Internet.
Murden-McClure answered questions sent by e-mail, and students were able to track her progress in cyberspace. Murden-McClure’s first attempt to row the Atlantic Ocean in 1998 failed when Hurricane Danielle capsized her rowboat 15 times. At the time of her rescue, she was at sea 85 days, the longest any woman has ever been alone at sea in a rowboat.
Besides being a world-famous rower, Murden-McClure is an accomplished climber. She has climbed to the summits of Alaska’s Mt. Silverthrone, Mt. Kenya in Africa and Antarctica’s Lewis Nunatuk—the first-ever summit by a woman.
Murden-McClure also has completed numerous ice climbing and kayaking expeditions. Murden-McClure earned a bachelor’s degree from Smith College and a master’s degree in divinity from Harvard University. She also earned a law degree from the University of Louisville and was admitted to the Kentucky bar in 1995. From 1992 to 1999, she served in a variety of positions in the mayor’s office and Louisville Development Authority. Murden-McClure currently is development director at the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville.
