Marie Marvingt, French Athlete and Aviatrix

Marie Marvingt (February 20, 1875 - December 14, 1963) was a French athlete, mountaineer, aviator and journalist. She won numerous prizes for her sporting achievements including those of swimming, cycling, mountain climbing, winter sports, ballooning, flying, riding, gymnastics, athletics, rifle shooting and fencing. She was the first woman to climb many of the peaks in the French and Swiss Alps. She was a record-breaking balloonist, an aviator and during WWI became the first woman to fly missions during conflict as a pilot. She was also a qualified surgical nurse, was the first trained and certified Flight Nurse in the world, and worked for the establishment of air ambulance services throughout the world. In 1955, on her 80th birthday, Marvingt was flown over Nancy by a U.S. Air Force officer from Toul-RosiC res Air Base in an American fighter jet. In the same year she also studied piloting helicopters, though she never earned her helicopter pilot's license. In 1961, at the age of 86, she cycled from Nancy to Paris. She died in 1963, at the age of 88. In France, there are streets, gymnasia, schools, flying clubs, scout groups, and an apartment complex named after her. Bain News Service, undated

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