A video of the men's 5K race at the 2008 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Seville, Spain was posted by Scott at [2008 WORLD OPEN WATER SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS].
In this video clip, you can see how the lead pack squeeze themselves around the V-shaped turn.
One of the Canadian swimmers, Jarrod Ballem who found himself in the middle of the aquatic scrum, told George Johnson of CanWest News Service, “People who’ve never seen a [world championship open water] race before aren’t ready for the sheer physicality of it. It can get a little scary. I mean, when I got out of the water after the 10K in Seville, I had a cut lip, two black eyes, and bruises all over my body. I saw one guy the next day and one of his eyes was totally shut. In 2003 at the World Championships, I got pummeled so hard — I guess it was an elbow — that I couldn’t keep my eyes open. Honestly, I was frightened I was going to pass out, pulled down in the pack and trampled. It got a little hairy. Luckily, I was able to push to the side. I didn’t finish well but at least I made it out of the water.’’
Additional photographs from Seville can be found on the home page of [10Kswim.com].
Copyright © 2008 by World Open Water Swimming Association
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