A Eugene swimmer stopped half a mile from France for the right reason

Robin Mayall could see the French cliff after 14 hours in the English Channel. She was roughly half a mile from shore, having swum through darkness, winds that reached 31 mph and jellyfish stings, when she noticed that she kept clearing her throat.

The 60-year-old Eugene city employee knew that could be an early sign of swimming-induced pulmonary edema, a dangerous buildup of fluid in the lungs. Her training had taught her that the mild symptom can arrive before severe breathing trouble or coughing blood. She stopped the attempt and got into the support boat.

Mayall had trained for two years and was on pace to finish the 21-mile crossing. Stopping that close to France was crushing, but it was also the exact judgment endurance athletes spend years trying to build: knowing when continuing is no longer courage.