Nyad tries daunting Cuba-Florida swim again

U.S. swimmer Diana Nyad, 64, gestures as she explains the jellyfish bites she experienced in her previous attempt to swim from the Florida Straits to the U.S. mainland, in Havana, Cuba, Friday, Aug. 30, 2013. AP

HAVANA — The Florida Strait has stubbornly resisted Diana Nyad’s repeated attempts to conquer it.

But the Florida-raised endurance athlete is back in the water again for her fourth try to become the first to swim from Cuba to Florida without a protective shark cage.

She expects to take about 80 hours to arrive somewhere between Key West and Marathon, more than 110 miles (177 kilometers) from Havana.

The 64-year-old Nyad tried three times in 2011 and 2012. Her last attempt was cut short amid boat trouble, storms, unfavorable currents and toxic stings from box jellyfish.

Amid shouts of “Onward, onward!” she jumped into the warm waters off Havana on Saturday to begin what she says is her last attempt at the crossing.

She said the adrenaline was “pumping very hard.”