“Charles Jackson French”

Black history is American history. Every day we must recognize the tremendous contributions that Black Americans have made and continue to make despite the centuries-old challenges they face. Tomorrow we honor Charles Jackson French.

On September 5th, 1942 after the U.S.S. Gregory was hit by Japanese naval fire in the South Pacific during WWII, French tied a rope around his waist and swam for 8 hours in shark infested waters towing a raft with 15 wounded soldiers to safety. Although French was named “Hero of the Year” by the Chicago Defender (a Black, Chicago based newspaper), the Navy denied him the Medal of Honor or Silver Star. Instead, he received a letter of commendation.

To read more about Charles Jackson French, have a look at “How Charles French swam eight hours in shark waters to save 15 U.S sailors in WWII,” an article by Michael Eli Dokosi for Face2Face Africa.

How Charles French swam eight hours in shark waters to save 15 U.S sailors in WWII

Workout for Sunday, February 28th, 2021 —

15 Rounds for Time of:

8 Lunges

7 Ground to Overhead with a Plate (45/25)

6 Burpees to a Plate

5 Deadlifts (95/65)

4 Hang Cleans

3 Front Squats

2 Push Press

1 Clean and Jerk

If you don’t have a plate you can sub SDHPs with a kettlebell, kettlebell swings or dumbbell snatches for G2Os. Just do regular burpees or burpees to a target. Eight hour open water swim towing 15 people in a boat is an optional afterbash.