Swimmer's Daily

  • In the pool, Briton Adam Peaty is the world’s fastest breaststroke swimmer over 50m. But, outside of it, the 19-year-old Derby-born teenager is still trying to catch up with his newfound fame.

    In town for the inaugural Prudential Singapore Swim Stars last Friday, he said: “I went to the post office (back in England) the other day, and a woman just came up to hug me. And I was like, ‘Who is this?’

    “I’m certainly starting to get noticed now. People congratulating me on the streets, saying ‘hi’. I guess you can call it the price of fame.”

    Read asiaone

    Image courtesy of deepbluemedia.eu

  • Time is precious for Olympic superstars. Time means training, studying, and perfecting your craft for years, just to shave bits of seconds off your time.

    Yet Saturday afternoon at Spinnaker’s, two of the world’s best at their craft chose to use their time to give back.

    Five-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte and three-time Paralympic gold medalist Justin Zook visited Panama City Beach to help the Mac Crutchfield Foundation at their Beach Party event.

    The organization is named after a 12 year old talented swimmer who passed away six years ago.

    See wjhg

  • 5-7 Sep 2014, Balatonfured, Hungary. Video courtesy of Magyar Úszó Szövetség

    http://youtu.be/0QvxSivcxGk

  • On 7th september 2014, the 2nd Tbilisi Open Water Marathon was arranged in Tbilisi, Georgia, by the Georgian Swimmer’s Club.

    Around 85 swimmers from all around Georgia competed, including national, youth and EYOF team members and Georgian record holders.

    Prize money was 400 GEL for 1st place, 200 for 2nd and 100 for 3rd, and they competed in three categories: Men 1995 and older, boys 1996-2000 and girls 2000 and older.

    Men and boys swam 5K, girls 3K.

    Results

    Men 1995 and older 5K
    1. Irakli Revishvili, “Tonusi”, 1:02.43
    2. Temo Kobakhidze, “Laguna-vere”, 1:08.40
    3. Tsotne Maisuradze, “Rustavi”, 1:15.00

    Boys 1996-2000 5K
    1.Akaki Vashakidze, “Rustavi”, 1:10.08
    2.Nika Kaulashvili, “Rustavi”, 1:14.40
    3.Irakli Kvaratskhelia, “Tonusi”, 1:19.50

    Girls 2000 and older 3K
    1. Teona Bostashvili, “Rustavi”, 0:51.00
    2. Ruska Goginashvili, “Rustavi”, 0:51.05
    3. Lika Chikhoria, “Rustavi”, 0:55.07

    This was the second open water event held by the Georgian Swimmers Club, with the inaugural being held in 2012. Revishvili and Bostashvili won the event also in 2012.

    Arranger Dato Murjikneli says they are going to develop open water swimming in Georgia, and are planning an International Black Sea Grand Prix in Batumi next summer.

    See photos from the event here on the Georgian Swimmers Club Facebook page.

    Featured image courtesy of Dato Murjikneli / Georgian Swimmers Club

  • On Saturday 6 September 2014, 73 year-old Otto Thaning from Cape Town, South Africa, became the oldest swimmer to cross the English Channel.  He completed the “Everest of Open Water Swimming” from Dover (England) to Wissant (France) in 12h52, covering a distance of 36km as the crow flies; however, the total distance swum equaled more than 45km due to tides and currents.  The average water temperature was 18 degrees Celsius and the swim was done wearing only a standard swimsuit, swimming cap and goggles, in accordance with English Channel rules and under the auspices of the Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation.

    Otto, who completed the swim once before in 1994 in a time of 10h29, had traveled to Dover for the challenge last year, but bad weather prevented an attempt.  Today, the conditions were optimal with mostly flat seas and manageable water temperatures, and according to his support crew Otto was strong and positive all the way.

    The age record had been held by Australian Clifford Batt (who was 67 at the time of his swim) for 27 years, until less than three weeks ago when Cyril Baldock completed the swim at the age of 70.  Thaning, who also holds the record for the oldest swimmer to complete a Robben Island crossing, now set the new official record of 73 years, 5 months and 24 days.

    His swim was followed on social media by hundreds of friends and fellow open water swimmers and followers from across the world, and he was showered with messages of support and congratulations.

    Otto is one of five Capetonians in Dover to swim the Enlish Channel this year.  On 1 September Zani Muller completed the swim successfully, while Mark De Klerk and husband and wife Anthony and Jeanine Pearse are also expected to make their attempts soon.  South Africans are known for their impeccable record in the Channel, most probably due to the ample cold water training opportunities available in Cape Town.

    Press release

  • FINA OPEN WATER SWIMMING GRAND PRIX 2014

    The seventh and final race of the 2014 circuit of the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix was staged on September 7 between Capri and Napoli (36km), in Italy, with the presence of 30 athletes (20 men and 10 women). After more than six hours of effort, Vitalij Khudyakov (KAZ) was the best among men in 6h11m27s, while Ana Marcela Cunha (BRA) got the gold in the women’s field in 6h24m47s.

    Besides the victory, this last leg of the series in Italy was also important to determine the overall ranking of the competition. In the men’s race, the minor medals were decisive for Evgenij Pop Acev (MKD, silver in 6h12m39s) and Joanes Hedel (FRA, bronze in 6h12m45s); thanks to these results, Hedel was the overall winner in the men’s category, with 59 points, while Pop Acev (second in 2013 and third in 2011) is the second of the ranking with 51, tied with his compatriot Tomi Stefanovski (9th in Capri-Napoli).

    Among women, the Brazilian win did not have much impact on the rankings, but the subsequent athletes finishing the race until the fourth place were fighting for the top honours in the overall ranking. Pilar Geijo, from Argentina, the second in Italy (6h34m31s) is the 2014 winner of the series, with the same number of points (102) than Silvie Rybarova (CZE, and fourth in Capri-Napoli). With her bronze medal in this last race, Spain’s Esther Nunez Morera ensured the second place of the women’s classification, with a total of 61 points, behind Rybarova and Geijo. Nunez Morera had already been first in 2012, and second in 2010, 2011 and 2013, while Geijo was the winner in 2010 and 2011 and second in 2012.

    Medallists in Capri-Napoli (ITA, 36km):
    Men: 1. Vitalij Khudyakov (KAZ), 6h11m27s; 2. Evgenij Pop Acev (MKD), 6h12m39s; 3. Joanes Hedel (FRA), 6h12m45s
    Women: 1. Ana Marcela Cunha (BRA), 6h24m47s; 2. Pilar Geijo (ARG), 6h34m31s; 3. Esther Nunez Morera (ESP), 6h36m59s

    Top-3 finishers of the overall ranking of the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix:

    MEN
    1. Joanes Hedel (FRA), 59 points
    2. Tomi Stefanovski (MKD), 51 pts
    2. Evgenij Pop Acev (MKD), 51 pts

    WOMEN
    1. Silvie Rybarova (CZE), 102 points
    1. Pilar Geijo (ARG), 102 pts
    3. Esther Nunez Morera (ESP), 61 pts

    FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix 2014 calendar:
    Race 1: February 2 in Santa Fe-Coronda (ARG, 57km)
    Race 2: February 9 in Hernandarias-Parana (ARG, 88km)
    Race 3: March 29 in Cancun (MEX, 15km)
    Race 4: July 26 in Lac St-Jean (CAN, 32km)
    Race 5: August 2 in Lac Magog (CAN, 34km)
    Race 6: August 23 in Ohrid Lake (MKD, 33km)
    Race 7: September 7 in Capri-Napoli (ITA, 36km)

    Press release from FINA

    Hotlinks

    – Results
    – Rankings
    – Rules & Regulations

    http://youtu.be/Tbtsr8XeRs8

  • Olympic Silver medallist and double World Champion Keri-Anne Payne and Olympic Gold medalist Duncan Goodhew joined hundreds of swimmers as they took part in British Gas SwimBritain in the Great Lake at Blenheim Palace on Sunday 7th September.

    Now in its second year, British Gas SwimBritain encourages more people to swim regularly and sees the decorated stars of British Swimming plus celebrities including David Walliams joining the public in the water at 11 locations nationwide between 30th August and 4th October.

    Participants compete as teams of four to complete relay challenges of 500m and 1,000m before receiving their hard-earned medals, with some swimmers using the event to raise funds for charity.

    The event at Blenheim was a fun-packed day for spectators as well as those competing, with a range of indoor and outdoor activities to keep families entertained, including arts and craft activities, a Wii Sports station, a 9 hole crazy golf course, table tennis and performances from a live Jazz Band.

    There’s still time to get involved. Go to swimbritain.co.uk to find out how you can take part.

    Press release from DNA

  • With the rise of green living, it seems like gardens are popping up everywhere: in backyards and abandoned lots and on rooftops. However, when the McClung family moved into their Mesa, Ariz. home in 2009, they took one look at the empty swimming pool in their backyard and saw an opportunity for something completely unique.

    They turned their swimming hole into something they’ve dubbed the Garden Pool, and over the past five years, it’s changed the McClung’s life, as well as foster a whole new sustainability movement.

    Read NationSwell

  • Although they have long been a treasured part of every Vermonters’ summer, as Vermont becomes less rural and more suburban, swimming holes are closed. More riverbanks get posted, more land gets developed, and more old swimming holes become newly private property — and inaccessible.

    The Vermont River Conservancy (VRC), a small organization that specializes in conserving rivers and the land alongside them, has taken note of those losses.

    “We’ve noticed that many of these really spectacular places that were used by local people were being purchased or posted,” says Stephan Syz, founding board member and guiding light of the River Conservancy.

    Assistant Director Lydia Menendez adds: “We receive calls frequently stating that a swimming hole that people used to visit has been closed.”

    Fortunately, the conservancy has not only noticed the trend but it has a plan, and a bold one, to solve the problem: to conserve for public use a swimming hole in every town in Vermont.

    “It could take us 10 years,” says Executive Director Steven Libby, “but every town should have its own swimming hole – it should just be part of that town’s public amenities.”

    Read VTDigger