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Swimming Sky-High at the Trans Tahoe Relay
19.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (0) comments
Thomas Vilhauer brought us information on the 33rd annual Trans Tahoe Relay that took place between the states of California and Nevada this weekend:
"Great conditions. A few hundred relay teams and 15 soloists. Scattered clouds, flat still air in the early morning and a bit of a breeze later on."
"The swim accepted any FINA-legal suit, though a few speedsuits were present at the beach start. Heard the first finishers only had five people swimming. Water temps reported as high as 67˚F (19.4˚C) at the Nevada-side start, but lots of fluctuation across the lake."
"It was a typically chaotic start with pilot boats trying to find their lead-off swimmers [see photo above from the Trans Tahoe Relay website]. Later in the race, the Coast Guard/police boats ticketed a couple of non-participant speedboats that sliced through the field with undue speed."
"Good times."
We agree - the history, the camaraderie, the competitiveness and the uniqueness of this 6-person relay at 6,200-feet (1,890 meters) altitude makes it one of the world's best open water swims.
One More Triple Crown Winner
19.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Solo Challenges | (0) comments
We earlier posted the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, but inadvertently missed one individual.
Erica Moffett of New York City should be added to the 27-person list of individuals who have completed the Triple Crown. She did Manhattan Island in 2007 in 8:36, Catalina in 2008 in 11:49, and the English Channel in 2006 in 14:19...as well as the Cape of Good Hope in 2005 in 2:22 and the Strait of Gibraltar in 2004 in 4:00.
Before and After the Storm - World Championships in Ostia
19.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (0) comments
After an anxious 24 hours of uncertainty, the open water swimmers were informed today that the 5K, 10K and 25K world championship races will be held at Ostia Beach.
Despite talk of holding the races at Lac Bracciano, FINA announced this Sunday morning that the men's and women's 5K races are on Tuesday at Ostia Beach.
The local organizers are busy recovering from the damage caused by strong winds and heavy surf to hold the race within 48 hours.
Photos by Andrew Gemmell before (above) and after (left) the weather hit Rome show the devastation at Ostia Beach.
We will cover the 5K races live at Twitter.
FINA Open Water Swimming Congress
19.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Rules | (0) comments
Sid Cassidy (second from left in photo) chaired the FINA Open WAter Swimming Technical Congress where the following four major decisions were discussed and approved:
1. In terms of officials, there will now be a Chief Referee (one per race), a Chief Judge and a Chief Finish Judge. The assignments for these three positions were defined in the rules.
The Chief Referee has the authority to intervene at any stage of the competition to ensure that the FINA rules are observed.
The Chief Judge shall record and communicate any decision received from the Referees during the competition.
2. Coaching and the giving of instructions by the approved swimmer's representatives on the feeding platform or in the escort safety craft are permitted.
3. From now on, all swimmers shall have their competition numbers clearly displayed in waterproof ink on their upper back, arms and hands.
4. When automatic timing system is being used, the microchip transponder technology must also provide split times during the race.
Follow the World Championship Live via Twitter
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Events | (0) comments
Follow the 2009 World Swimming Championships' 5K race live via Twitter (http://twitter.com/swimopenwater) on Tuesday, July 21st. Time to be announced.
Open Water Swimming Trivia
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: History | (0) comments
An open water swimming trivia quiz is below for a test of your knowledge of the sport:
Q1. What city gave Gertrude Ederle a ticker-tape parade? For extra credit, what year?
A1. New York City (in 1926).
Q2. What year did the La Jolla Rough Water Swim start?
A2. 1916 (near San Diego, California).
Q3. Who was the first person to swim across the Cook Strait? For extra credit, what year?
A3. Barry Devonport in 1962 (in 11 hours and 20 minutes).
Q4. What famous beach did Keo Nakama finish on when he became the first person to swim across the Molokai Channel?
A4. Hanauma Bay (on Oahu).
Q5. What serious illness did the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim gold medalist from The Netherlands overcome?
A5. (Maarten van der Weijden overcame) leukemia.
Q6. What famous professional swimmer got disqualified during the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim in Beijing?
A6. Vladimir Dyatchin (of Russia for two yellow cards).
Q7. What two islands did Lynne Cox swim between when she crossed the Bering Strait?
A7. Little Diomede (of the US) and Big Diomede (of Russia).
Q8. From 1978 to 2005, two Americans consecutively held the English Channel record. Who were they?
A8. Penny Lee Dean (from 1978 to 1994) and Chad Hundeby (from 1994 to 2005).
Q9. Who was Petar Stoychev's escort boat pilot when he became the first person to break 7 hours across the English Channel?
A9. Michael Oram.
Q10. What American swimmer won seven World Professional Marathon Swimming Federation titles during the 1980’s? For extra credit, whose record did he break?
A10. Paul Asmuth broke John Kinsella’s previous record set between 1974 and 1979.
Q11. How many mothers competed in the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim at the Beijing Olympics? For extra credit, who were they?
A11. Two, Angela Maurer of Germany who finished 4th and Edith van Dijk of The Netherlands who finished 14th.
Q12. In what country is the longest professional marathon swimming race held? For extra credit, how long is this race?
A12. Argentina, the 88K (54 miles) Hernandarias-Parana FINA Grand Prix race.
Q13. Who is the current chairman of the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame? For extra credit, how is the current secretary?
A13. Kevin Murphy (of the UK). Dale Petranech is the secretary.
Q14. Have more than 15,000 people compete in the Midmar Mile nearly every year since 2005? For extra credit, how many Olympic swimmers competed in the 2009 Midmar Mile?
A14. Yes, 13 Olympians competed in 2009.
Q15. Do more people compete in the Sun Moon Lake International Swim in Taiwan than the Vansbrosimningen race in Sweden?
A15. Yes (nearly 22,000 people swim the Sun Moon Lake International Swim and over 8,000 people compete in the Vansbrosimningen).
Q16. How much money is won by the male and female winners of the RCP Tiburon Mile?
A16. US$10,000.
Q17. When was the Rottnest Channel first swum? For extra credit, who did it?
A17. Gerd von Dincklage-Schulenburg on January 24th, 1956.
Q18. How far was the longest professional marathon swim ever held in America? For extra credit, where was the race held and how many people finished the race?
A18. 60 miles across Lake Michigan in 1963 with only two finishers (Abou-Heif and Ted Erickson).
Q19. What colors are the warning and disqualification cards in competitive open water swimming?
A19. Yellow for warnings and red for disqualification.
Q20. How many transponders are used by each swimmer in FINA races or at the Olympics?
A20. Two – one on each wrist.
Q21. What open water swimming distances are raced at the FINA World Swimming Championships and the FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships?
A21. 5K, 10K and 25K.
Q22. How many professional open water swimming circuits are sanctioned by FINA? For extra credit, what is the formal name of these pro circuits?
A22. Two, the FINA 10KM Marathon Swimming World Cup and the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix.
Q23. Where will the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim be held at the 2012 London Olympics?
A23. The Serpentine (a man-made lake in Hyde Park in London).
Q24. Where will 2009 World Swimming Championships be held?
A24. Ostia, Rome.
Q25. Who is considered the best professional marathon swimmer in the world today? Hint: She won the 2008 Olympic 10K Marathon Swim. For extra credit, what country is she from?
A25. Larisa Ilchenko from Russia.
By George - Great Shots of the Nike Swim Miami
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (0) comments
Australians Sweep Around Manhattan Island
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Solo Challenges | (0) comments
Australia took 1-2-3 in the annual 28.5-mile Manhattan Island Marathon Swim with John Van Wisse (middle) defending his title in 7 hours 10 minutes 35 seconds. Penny Palfrey (left) was second in 7 hours 17 minutes and 7 seconds and Michael Renford (right) third in 7 hours 29 minutes and 4 seconds. This was similar to last year when John also took first with Penny second and Rondi Davies third.
The Vicelords won the 6-person relay in 7 hours 12 minutes and 1 second. The overall results are below:
(1) John Van Wisse: 7:10:35
(2) Vicelords: 7:12:01 (6-person relay)
(3) Penny Palfrey: 7:17:07
(4) Michael Renford: 7:29:04
(5) Mighty Mermaids: 7:33:08 (6-person relay)
(6) Team Mexico: 7:40:22 (4-person relay)
(7) Lennard Lee: 7:41:09
(8) Elizabeth Fry: 7:44:47
(9) Marcella MacDonald: 7:48:59
(10) Conor Rowley: 7:52:15
(11) Lance Ogren: 7:59:44
(12) Jon Ennis: 8:02:25
(13) Mariel Hawley: 8:08:15.
(14) Rob Deakin: 8:19:50
(15) Antonio Arguelles: 8:21:11
(16) Chris Palfrey: 8:21:40
(17) Jane McCormick: 8:24:40
(18) Leticia Flores Hernandez: 8:30:12
(19) Maria Matheu: 8:31:00
(20) Elaine Howley: 8:39:50
(21) NY Harbor Seals: 8:40:33 (2-person relay)
(22) George Hunihan: 8:41:54
(23) NY Nadadores: 8:45:39 (4-person relay)
(24) Brooklyn Masters Double Take: 8:47:05 (4-person relay)
(25) Kathleen Jaeger: 8:53:07
(26) Willy Blumentals: 9:05:15
DNF: Ricardo Grossman, Stephen Autry, Cara McAteer, Suzie Dods, Amanda Hunt, Four Loops (4-person relay), Asphalt Green Triathlon Club (4-person relay), Sea Lice (2-person relay)
"I didn't feel cold," said John. "I go with my rhythm. It's a lot of preparation [to train for the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim and I felt good."
Swimming World Magazine also had coverage of the race - click here.
Open Water Swimming in North Carolina
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (0) comments
When Taylor Cooper first visualized bringing an open water swim to North Carolina, he was confident but inexperienced. "I was venturing into waters I didn't know a lot about. But I knew we could get here," said race director Taylor, head coach of the Sandhills Sandsharks Swim Team of North Carolina.
By all definitions, Taylor and open water swimming has arrived in North Carolina. When the North Carolina Open Water Championships first started in 1998 when the race was called the Sandsharks Open Water Swim, the race had 47 swimmers. This year, the event attracted more than 600 swimmers doing races between 400 meters and 10K, cheered on by over 1,500 spectators in Seven Lakes.
The winner of the featured 5K race was Joe Kinderwater (shown on left), a University of North Carolina student who is one of the race favorites at next week's USA Swimming world championship trials. Theresa Meyer was the top female finisher.
Taylor said open water swimming is gaining popularity because of its uniqueness. "It is so different from a regular swim meet. It is more like watching a giant steeplechase in the water. My goal is to get us to 800 (competitors) next year."
Like open water swims throughout the US, the race attracts age group swimmers, masters swimmers and triathletes supported by a huge crowd.
Former champions have included Chip Peterson, the 2005 world 10K champion, and Olympic bronze medalist and former American 1500-meter free record holder, Chris Thompson.
But, Chip will not compete in the American world championship trials this week due to an illness - leaving the door wide open for Joe, his training partner.
Beautiful Beaches in America
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: History | (0) comments
If you enjoy open water swimming in warm, clear waters, you can do no better in the U.S. by visiting these beaches that were all rated number one in America by Dr. Beach:
1991: Kapalua Bay Beach, Maui, Hawaii
1992: Bahia Honda State Park, Florida
1993: Hapuna Beach, Big Island, Hawaii
1994: Grayton Beach, Florida
1995: St. Andrews State Park, Florida
1996: Lanikai Beach, Oahu, Hawaii
1997: Hulopoe Bay, Lanai, Hawaii
1998: Kailua Beach Park, Oahu, Hawaii
1999: Wailea Beach, Maui, Hawaii
2000: Mauna Kea Beach, Hawaii
2001: Poipu Beach Park, Kauai, Hawaii
2002: St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, Florida
2003: Kaanapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii
2004: Hanauma Bay, Oahu, Hawaii
2005: Fort DeSoto Park – North Beach, St. Petersburg, Florida
2006: Fleming Beach Park, Maui, Hawaii
2007: Ocracoke Lifeguard Beach, Outer Banks, North Carolina
2008: Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin/Clearwater, Florida
2009: Hanalei Bay, Kauai, Hawaii
A Struggle Upstream - A Joy Downstream
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (0) comments
Over 40 open water swimmers competed in the 2K, 4K and 6K swims in the Blackwater River, Fermoy, County Cork in Ireland on June 6th.
The course was a stuggle up the Blackwater River as the swimmers swam against the current on the left-hand side of the river in the first half of the course. But, once around a turn buoy, the swimmers flew back down the middle of the river.
It typically took three times as long to swim upstream against the current as it did to swim downstream with the current - a struggle and a joy every open water swimmer can greatly appreciated.
Photos courtesy of Ned Denison.
Russian Marathon Swimming Champions
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Swimmers | (0) comments
At the Russian National Open Water Swimming Championships, Anna Uvarova and Natalia Pankina, two stalwarts on the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix circuit, placed 1-2 in the 16K race and will represent Russia at the upcoming 2009 World Swimming Championships in the 25K race.
On the men's side, Daniil Serebrennikov, another stalwart on the FINA pro circuits, and former world 10K champion Vladimir Dyatchin (shown above) had an incredible 16K race where they tied for first in an identical time of 3 hours 13 minutes 57.5 seconds.
Wpław przez Kiekrz (Open Water Swim through Kiekrz).
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Races | (1) comments
Last week, the city of Poznań in Poland held its 42nd Wpław przez Kiekrz (Swim through Kiekrz). The Wpław przez Kiekrz race started in 1967 and was the original qualifier for the defunct Baltic Swim Marathon and is now Poland’s oldest and longest open water swim.
Many great Polish swimmers have participated in the race including Przemysław Abramowicz, Artur Wojdat (a medalist from the 1988 Seoul Olympics) and Malwina Bukszowana. In 2007, the organizers published a book celebrating the 40 years of the swim. The race includes a 100-meter children's race, a 1.5K race, a 3K race and the main 7K race while concurrently serving as the Polish championships for police and journalists.
The 3K race was the third race of the Grand Prix Wielkopolski (Greater Poland) which is a series of nine races in its third year. The 7K race was won by 17-year-old Mateusz Mosiężny in a time of 1:33:08, who took the early lead early with last year’s winner Markus Rosenkranz from Berlin. Mateusz said, "I was happy with the win, but I was focusing more on the Polish Junior Championships next weekend."
This year was also the first year the race was named in honor of Stanisław Ganczarczyk who was one of the original founders of the race and who recently passed away. I
As Michał Skrodzki says, "In a country where open water swimming has a small profile, it’s great to see such an historic swim still going around year after year. Things are on the upswing in Poland with the Grand Prix Wielkopolski gaining a major sponsor in Pizza Express. It's first prize this year is a trip for two to Egypt. So, hopefully, Polish open water swimming will only get bigger and better in Poland."
Bill Goll, A Pioneering Marathon Swimmer
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: History | (2) comments
A pioneering marathon swimmer, William "Bill" Goll, was born about 1908. He finished second in the 28.5-mile race Manhattan Island Marathon Swim in 1930 and participated in at least nine Canadian National Exhibition swims between 1931 and 1954 with many top-five finishes in these events.
Bill also participated in at least five 22.5-mile swims around Atlantic City in New Jersey between 1954 and 1959, always finishing in the top 10 despite being between 47 and 51 years old. According to John's research, Bill even traveled as a high diver between 1935-1939 with a carnival during the Great Depression.
Truly an early pioneer and a rare one, doubling as a high diver.
Referring Open Water Swimming
18.Jul.09 | posted by: steve munatones | filed under: Rules | (1) comments
Dennis Miller of Fiji was the head referee of the women's Olympic 10K Marathon Swim. Ronnie Wong Man Chui of Hong Kong was the head referee for the men's race. What does a head referee do and why is the job so critical in the sport of open water swimming? Read on.
25 highly motivated, aggressive open water athletes will swim four 2.5K loops on the Olympic rowing course, fighting around 16 turn buoys, swimming in and out of feeding stations, and sprinting in a frantic rush to touch pads raised a few feet above the water.
If the race unfolds as expected, the 25 athletes will swim in a large tight pack, each close enough to not only rip the goggles right off the heads of each other, but also to snatch the gel packs from the swim suits of their rivals.
The 25 athletes have their own dreams and expectations: Dreams of Olympic gold...and expectations of getting hit, bumped, pulled, banged, elbowed, kneed, cut off, scratched, kicked, yanked and jostled throughout the race.
How do the head referees keep order in open water? How do they give fouls and give disqualifications while the athletes continue to swim?
At the Olympics, there will a head referee, two assistant referees, turn judges and feeding station judges on the floating pontoon. All officials will be in constant contact with one another via hand-held radios.
The head referee and the two assistant referees are positioned in boats along the course and work hand-in-hand with their boat drivers who navigate as closely as possible to the swimmers, without creating a wake.
The head referee positions himself close to the second and third swimmers in the lead pack and makes himself visible to everyone in the lead pack by intensely watching the swimmers for the entire 2-hour race from the bow of his boat.
The assistant referee positions himself further back in the lead pack in a separate boat, constantly watching for rule infractions. Because the first 2-3 loops of the 4-loop 10K race will probably include all 25 entrants at the Olympics in one large tightly bound pack, you will see 2 referee boats positioned only a few meters from the entire pack - the head referee towards the front, and the assistant referee towards the back.
What are the possible infractions?
Under the general unsportsmanlike rule, athletes can be disqualified for making intentional contact, obstruction or interference with another swimmer. Such unsportsmanlike conduct is judged solely by the head referee.
But with swimmers constantly bumping each other, the referee's key consideration is if the contact was intentional or not. A very high majority of the occurrences are simply unintentional instances of contact that do not require intervention by the referees and are an integral part of the sport.
On the other hand, when swimmers are swimming too aggressively, the referees quickly become pro-active and try to mitigate further escalation of inappropriate physical altercations among the swimmers.
Warning whistles and directives given by hand motions are repeatedly used by the referees. For example, when three swimmers are swimming together and the two outside swimmers start to squeeze the middle swimmer, the referee will blow his whistle and give hand signals to instruct the two outside swimmers to separate and give the middle swimmer some room. On the other hand, if swimmers lock arms while swimming stroke for stroke or run into each other during the crush around the turn buoys, the referee generally judges this contact to be unintentional.
While most physical contact among the swimmers is viewed as accidental or part of the sport, there is a subjective element that is entirely dependent upon the referee's experience and perspective.
Can athletes be disqualified?
In general, whistle warnings are given fairly frequently throughout the race - perhaps 2-4 times per loop during a relatively "clean" race and 5-10 times per loop during a more aggressive race.
At the first rule infraction when the referee judges contact to be intentional and unsportsmanlike, the head referee shows a yellow flag to the swimmer(s) with a card bearing the swimmer's number. This number is written with black markers on their shoulders, shoulder blades and back of hands for identification purposes.
On the second infringement, the swimmers are shown a red flag and a card bearing their number, and they can be asked to immediately leave the water.
So what kind of race happened at the Olympics?
It was an extremely tactical and close race, both among the men and women, carefully monitored by Dennis Miller and Ronnie Wong and their teams, whistles, yellow cards and red cards added to the race...that both came down to exciting finishes.
Photo by Dr. Jim Miller of the start at the 2003 World Swimming Championships 5K race.
