Britta Kamrau, A Model of Determination

Britta Kamrau, a nominee for the 2008 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year, is photogenic, appearing in many magazines. But, as her competitors know well, Britta has a steely determination and competitive spirit that drives the 29-year-old pro swimmer from Germany.


Over the course of her career, Britta has always been competitive and often stood on top of the podium. She races everywhere and in every condition, although she admits "I am just not good and suffer too much in really, really cold water."

She valiantly won the rough 25K race at the 2007 World Swimming Championships in Melbourne when the race was held under 40 mph winds until it was interrupted by a squall. Through it all, Britta kept on churning away even as the turn buoys were torn from their anchors.

She described her hardest race as a 2004 FINA World Cup race in Haikou, China. Britta had previously completed the exact same race course two years previously, but the swimmers faced changing tides and horrible weather conditions in 2004. Britta said, "We were more than 10 hours in the water, but we only all did about only 15 kilometers before they finally cancelled the race. It was horrible…we were mentally and physically prepared for 6 hours swimming with our drinks [and food], but there were no officials at all on the water with us, although there were very bad and big jellyfish with us throughout the whole race. We could not even ask anyone what is happening and what are were supposed to do. We didn't even know where we were going."

True to the nature of competitive open water swimmers worldwide, Britta forged on … and returned for the next race.

Over the course of her career, Britta has competed all over the world with the following results:

European Open Water Swimming Championships:

• 1999: bronze in the 5K and 25K
• 2000: silver in the 5K
• 2002: bronzed in 10K
• 2004: gold in the 5K, 10K and 25K
• 2008: silver in the 5K and 25K; bronze in the 5K Team race

FINA World Swimming Championships or FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships:

• 2002: gold in the 10K; bronze in the 25K
• 2003: silver in the 25K; bronze in the 5K
• 2004: gold in the 10K and 25K
• 2005: silver in 25K; bronze in the 10K
• 2006: bronze in the 5K
• 2007: gold in the 25K

FINA World Cup pro races:

• 25-time winner in various FINA world cup races since 1997
• 2003: 1st overall in FINA World Cup series
• 2006: 1st overall in the FINA World Cup series

After winning $10,000 at the RCP Tiburon Mile in San Francisco, Britta is now preparing for three FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix races in Argentina: the 57K Maraton Acuatica Internacional Rio Coronda, the 15K Maraton Acuatico Internacional Cuidad de Rosario and the 15K International Open Water Swim La Patagones-Viedma, a total of 87K (54 miles) of hard swimming over a 13-day period in February 2009.

Details on Britta and the other 11 nominees for the World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year are posted here; information on the 14 male nominees are posted here.

Photos by Heiner Kopcke.

Copyright © 2009 by World Open Water Swimming Association

Summer Classics - in the Southern Hemisphere

The FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix has traditionally kicked off in Argentina where 3 highly competitive professional swims have attracted swimmers from around the world since 1961.

The 57K Maratón Acuática Internacional Santa Fe-Coronda starts off the circuit in February. The 15K Rosario swim and the 15K Viedma swim follow for 3 straight weeks of swimming, celebrations and travel in a country that has developed great open water swimmers for the past 50 years.

The Santa Fe - Coronda, race starts in the city of Santa Fe and finishes in Coronda, with the swimmers traditionally starting about 9 am for an 8-hour race. The swimmers have to navigate the river currents and are greeted by tens of thousands of local citizens who come out for the race and concurrently held festival.

Throughout the history of the swim, the world's best open water swimmers have won this race, from John Kinsella, Bill Heiss and James Kegley, Herman Willemse of the Netherlands, Abou Heif of Egypt, and Argentina's most famous swimmers including Carlos Larriera, Horacio Iglesias, Claudio Plit and Diego Degano.

The Maratón Acuática Internacional Santa Fe - Coronda, is so well-known in Argentina that a documentary was made called Agua. Among others, Diego Degano and Edith van Dijk appeared in the movie. Agua was about a 34-year-old former open water swimming champion, who has been wrongly accused of doping in the Santa Fe-Coronda Marathon. The swimmer has abandoned his career and was living in the desert. Eight years later, he returns to Santa Fe to try to re-gain his title and clear his name. However, long-buried emotions come back to haunt him. He meets a stubborn and disciplined pool swimmer, who tries hard to be selected for the national team, but fails. Identifying with the pool swimmer, the former open water swimmer champion asks him to be his guide on the boat that follows him during the Santa Fe-Coronda marathon.

For a Spanish-language video of the Santa Fe-Coronda swim, check out