Winning In Windermere

Daniil Serebrennikov and Nadine Pastor of German upset their more famous elite competitors in the 1-mile British Gas Great North Swim yesterday under sunny skies and in 17°C water in Lake Windermere this weekend. Olympian and race commentator Steve Parry reports, "The elite races demonstrated the importance of tactics for both the men’s and women’s events."

"In the women’s race, 10K world champion Keri-Anne Payne took an early lead until the 1.200K mark while followed by a chasing pack with Germany’s Steffi Biller and Nadine Pastor and the Russian Olympic gold medalist Larisa Ilchenko. At this point, the physicality of the sport really came into the full view with leg and elbow kicks coming into quick exchange."

"Nadine broke free of the chasing pack and used the calm water to her full advantage, while Katy chose to take a different route than the group as she gained valuable yards. Nadine was the clear winner, but you could have thrown a coin over second, third and fourth. Great Britain's Katy Whitfield finished second with the Larisa in third and Keri-Anne in fourth."

The first half of men’s race was led by long-distance specialist Alexander Studzinski of Germany who built up a ten-meter gap between him and the chase pack.

Steve summarizes, "It looked like an impossibility that Alexander was ever going to lose, but Daniil Serebrennikov of Russia swam the perfect race and timed his move flawlessly, pushing ahead for just one [last] metre of the race to give Daniil his second victory in the British Gas Great Swim four-part series. Much to the delight of the home crowd, British junior swimmer Tom Allen finished hin third."

But, more importantly, 6,000 other swimmers entered the event with the world-class swimmers in only the second year of the event.

"The Great Swim brand has created a series of events for people to get excited about," said Steve. "My personal hope is that these mass participation open water swimming events will one day be just as popular and successful as their Great Run counterparts."

Elite Women’s Results:
1. Nadine Pastor (GER) 18.14
2. Katy Whitfield (GBR) 18.15
3. Larisa Ilchenko (RUS) 18.16

Elite Men’s Results:
1. Daniil Serebrennikov (RUS) 16.23
2. Alexander Studzinski (GER) 16.23
3. Tom Allen (GBR) 16.26

The event will be televised in Great Britain in the fall on Channel 4.

Whitfield Beats Olympians - Lurz Rolls On

Thomas Lurz continued his winning streak over a strong field by winning the Great London Swim, a wetsuit-compulsory 1-mile race in 21˚C water, but it was the women's field where Katy Whitfield upset a group of well-known pool and open water swimming Olympians.

Katy, a member of UK's national open water team, has gained experience on the international circuit, and saw her investment pay off at the Royal Victoria Dock.

Katy swam confidently despite swimming the furthest route amidst a slew of Olympic medalists. Thomas also swam confidently and was in control throughout the race, swimming shoulder-to-shoulder with David Davies for most of the way, but when Thomas turned on his afterburners, David was unable to hold on. However, a late attack from the group, led by Daniel Fogg who swam a great line to the finish, made it exciting for the spectators.

Following in the Olympians and elite swimmers, 1,000 age-group, fitness and masters swimmers took off over the same course. British Gas Great Swim commentator Steve Parry said: "It was an elite race of exceptional quality, but the most important thing was to see the thousands of swimmers of all ages and abilities taking part and enjoying the day."

The result of the top 10 Women and Men:

1. Katy Whitfield (GBR) 17.39.74
2. Poliana Okimoto (BRA) 17.42.90
3. Cassie Patten (GBR) 17.48.85
4. Keri-Anne Payne (GBR) 17.50.52
5. Steffi Biller (GER) 17.58.54
6. Stephanie Rice (AUS( 17.59.37
7. Vanessa Raw (GBR) 19.15.19
8. Harriet Brettle (GBR) 19.16.67
9. Ellis Jackson (GBR) 19.22.96
10. Abbie Thorrington (GBR) 19.24.77

1. Thomas Lurz (GER) 16.24.62
2. Dan Fogg (GBR) 16.26.12
3. Dave Davies (GBR) 16.29.29
4. Petar Stoychev (BUL) 16.29.71
5. Tom Allen (GER) 16.32.35
6. Mazen Aziz (EGY) 16.34.51
7. Dave Carry (GBR) 16.47.26
8. Richard Stannard (GBR) 17.11.25
9. Scott Hathaway (GBR) 17.36.95
10. Fred Clatworthy (NZL) 17.37.43

Associated Press photo of Thomas Lurz. Photo of start from the Great London Swim website.

Veteran Keri-Anne Payne Leads Britain In Rome

With the water temperature at the 2009 World Swimming Championships in Rome expected to be 26°C (78.8°F) and several good open water races under her belt during the past months, Olympic silver medalist Keri-Anne Payne looks to be one of the pre-race favorites in the 10K.

Keri-Anne will be the most successful international veteran among her British teammates that include Richard Charlesworth (5K), Daniel Fogg (10K), Craig Hamilton (10K), Alfie Howes (5K), Charlotte Wooliscroft (5K), Katy Whitfield (5K and 10K)

British Swimming's Open Water Performance Manager Mark Perry has been at the helm of creating the world's most comprehensive and strategic plan in open water swimming and remains focused on the long term. Mark analyzed his team's medal chances in Rome, "We're mainly going to the World Championships for the experience - everything now is about building a team and working toward London 2012. We would love to come away with a few medals, but we have to be realistic. We can't expect a repeat of Beijing, but there should definitely be some good performances."

Open Water Internationalization - British in Israel for Rome

13 top British open water swimmers will compete in the first leg of the Open Water LEN Cup in Eilat, Israel this weekend, including Olympic silver medalist Keri-Anne Payne (see photo), Daniel Fogg, 2008 LEN Cup silver medalist and up-and-comers Richard Charlesworth, who has been training in Los Angeles at USC, and Charlotte Wooliscroft.

Mark Perry, British Gas open water Team Leader, said, "This event is more about our athletes and how well they compete, not so much about the international competition. It will be used as qualification for the European Junior Championships and the World Championships, so we want to see how well they can perform. It will be a good test for some of our younger athletes. They will have to battle against the heat so it will test their mettle and we’ll see if they are up for it."

The 2009 LEN Open Water Cup sees the best European men’s and women’s open water swimmers compete in five 10K races throughout the year.

The British team includes Richard Charlesworth, Daniel Fogg, Craig Hamilton, Alfie Howes, Gareth Keating, Sophie Casson, Keri-Anne Payne, Charlotte Woolscroft, Katy Whitfield, Catherine Marcoft, Kayleigh Dawson, Eleanor Faulkner and Lucy Worrall.

Copyright © 2009 by World Open Water Swimming Association