Wet and windy conditions met the 340+ competitors that took to the water for the return of the Victorian Open Water Championships at Eastern Beach, Geelong on Saturday 9 December.
After a 3 year hiatus, the event was a showcase of open water swimming with 1.25, 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10km events, as well a 500m recreational event on offer. Victoria’s top open water swimmers were joined by members of the general public who took on the challenge, proving that open water swimming certainly has a place on the Swimming Victoria calendar.
We saw some outstanding performances, particularly in the 10km race. Western Melbourne Propulsion’s Robbe Dilissen (coached by Seb Bettiol) was strong in the Men’s 10km, finishing well ahead of the field in 2:02.32.
It was a gutsy effort from Brazilian Michel Pavusa Ambrus who dug deep to complete the 10km course, an amazing effort from the recreational swimmer.
Cheltenham’s Tommy Lane (coached by Kelly Stubbins) took out the Men’s 17-18 years 5km finishing in 59:44. He was followed by MLC Aquatic’s Mackenzie Hunter (coached by Jayden Brian) who claimed the Women’s 17-18 years 5km with a personal best time of 1:02:13.
For full results click here.
Swimming Victoria’s Events Experience Manager, Narelle Holding was thrilled with the success of the event. “It has been great to see how well received the Victorian Open Water Championships have been from both SV members and the general public. I think this years event was a great starting point for what could be a fantastic festival of open water swimming in years to come” she said.
Swimming Victoria would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone involved for helping us put on this great event, in particular Geelong Marine World, Geelong City Council, Grant Siedle and the entire safety team, Sports Event Services, Masters Swimming Victoria, Kahlia Marsh, Sam Sheppard and all of our wonderful officials and volunteers.
And finally, thank you to all our participants for supporting this event, we look forward to seeing it grow in years to come!
