IGFA Theater Presents: Sara C. Farrington
"Perfection! The real record is to take the first one, because if you catch the biggest fish, someone eventually is going to catch a bigger one," Ernest Hemingway cabled Sara "Chisie" Farrington when she became the first woman to catch a broadbill swordfish off the coast of South America. "Firsts" became a hallmark of Farrington's angling career. She was the first woman to catch a tuna on rod and reel (Nova Scotia, 1935) and the first woman to catch two marlin in one day (South America, 1939). At the time broadbill swordfish were widely considered saltwater angling's ultimate challenge. When Farrington -- in another first for a woman -- took two swordfish in one day, her accomplishment was considered among the greatest saltwater feats possible. She hauled in a 396-pounder and a 659-pounder within hours of each other during that 1941 outing off the coast of Chile. Born Sara Houston Chisholm, she grew up in New York and traveled abroad for the first time when she was 17. In Paris, she contracted polio and was bedridden for several months. A weakness in her right leg and hand persisted throughout her life, making her long angling battles very painful and her sporting successes all the more amazing. Chisie began fishing the same day she met her future husband, Kip Farrington, a man already well entrenched as an accomplished angler and author. Chisie Farrington set 11 IGFA world records. She appeared in 11 big game angling films and wrote for Harper's, Vogue and Mademoiselle. Among her most enduring achievements was the publication of her 1951 book, Women Can Fish, which offered the only extensive account of women anglers of her time.
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