Yin Xiaoling, a 40-year-old factory worker and swim amateur, has recently conquered a plateau lake in southwest China's Yunnan Province in 17 hours and eight minutes.
She swam 36.5 kilometers across the Fuxian Lake which, 1,722 meters above the sea level, is located some 60 kilometers south of the provincial capital Kunming.
With the water averaging 87 meters in depth, Fuxian is the second deepest freshwater lake in China.
Yin started her adventure from the lake's west bank at 4 p.m. of August 24 and reached her destination on the northern bank at 9:08 a.m. the next day, some four hours ahead of the expected time.
During the long-distance swim, Yin overcame various difficulties including strong winds, huge waves, cold water and the densely-laid fishing nets and hooks. Right after the adventure, she received a medical check-up in a hospital, and the doctor announced that she was in good health.
Yin, 1.62 meters tall and weighing 80 kilograms, works with the Dali Cigarette Factory in Yunnan. She began to practice swimming at the age of 28. On July 29, 2001, she swam 38 kilometers against the current across Er Hai, also a highland lake in Kunming, without professional guidance and specialized protection.
(china.org.cn by James Liu, August 30, 2002)
