Gertrude Ederle sponsored by a newspaper, the "Baltimore Post", which tried to create a rivalry between her and Ederle in the weeks spent training off the French coast. In addition to Cannon, several other swimmers, including two other American women – Clarabelle Barrett and Amelia Gade Corson – were training in England with the goal of becoming the first woman to swim the Channel. Barrett and Cannon were unsuccessful but three weeks after Ederle's feat, Corson crossed in a time that was 50 minutes slower than Ederle. For her second attempt at the Channel, Ederle had an entourage aboard the tug (the
Caserma Ederle They were commanded by Lieutenant Colonel (later General) John P. Abizaid, who later commanded U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) from July 2003 to March 2007. A reorganization to command structure created USAG (United States Army Garrison)-Vicenza to handle the (non-combatant forces) installation activities of Caserma Ederle. In 2004, the U.S. military announced plans to extend the military footprint in Vicenza to include all elements of the 173rd ABCT. The new base annex was planned to be located on the disused civilian Dal Molin Airport, roughly from Caserma Ederle. The plan was first agreed by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's administration. The