It was a communist propaganda ploy.
100%
No flippers?
But what about cancles??
I question her speed also. There was one report that at one point she was swimming 5 mph. Come on..
Any video shots of her swim did not show any suit, mask or a stroke that could be 2 mph let alone 5 mph.
Had she landed further up the Keys or started further West of Havana I could see the Gulfstream aiding her. But she swan basically 90 deg across it.
Come to think of it she would have had to swim NW or WNW to compensate for approx 2-2.5 kt. Gulfstream current.
OTOH I commend her tenacity.
I’d say her swim was a little culturally insensitive. There are so many who attempted that trek, not for fame but for freedom - and a good portion lost their lives.
Rosie Ruiz Revisited???
Her fellow swimmers asking for the data. They think she may have rested on the boat for a few hours. They want to see the tide charts to explain how she could swim 3-4 miles an hour when 2 is her max. This will be interesting.