Dutch Swimmer Wins Open Water 10K, Second Place Controversy

Dutch swimmer Sharon Van Rouwendaal swam the 10 kilometer race in 1:56:32.1. Van Rouwendaal suffered from a shoulder injury this year leading up to the Olympics that affected her training schedule. She won by nearly 20 seconds but the race to the finish for second and third place was the spectacle of the day.

Van Rouwendaal’s French training partner Aurelie Muller was battling with Italian swimmer Rachele Bruni. The finish area was a funnel and as the swimmers swam towards the finish line the funnel narrowed. Muller and Bruni were swimming side-by-side, Muller on the left and Bruni on the right. As the funnel narrowed Muller skimmed the side of the funnel barrier and swam her right arm overtop of Bruni in effect holding Bruni under water while she reached for the timing board.

Muller was disqualified for “impeding” Bruni who took the silver medal. Muller left the race in tears after news that her nearly two hour swim was ineligible for silver because she swam into her opponent in the last foot of the race. According to Yahoo Sports French officials said Muller was confused because the buoys marking the start of the line weren’t lined up with the buoys at the finish line.

Bruni finished with a time 1:56:49.5, 17.4 seconds behind Van Rouwendaal. Poliana Okimoto of Brazil took the bronze medal in 1:56:51.4. At the London Olympics Okimoto didn’t complete the race due to suffering from hypothermia.

Rouwendaal didn’t feel tired after the first 6 km so she decided to continue to swim strong towards the finish, she said.

“I kicked hard for about 200m and looked back to see that I’d opened a gap. From there I just used my arms and paced the race. I didn’t feel any fatigue until the very end,” Van Rouwendaal said.

The Copacabana was beautiful scenery for the race to take place but there were concerns about the cleanliness of the water in Guanabara Bay was safe for swimmers, rowers and sailors.  According to The Wall Street Journal the water is cleaner than it was two months ago but it is still very dirty. Trash bunches where the current meets and centuries of fecal matter that have contaminated the Bay is hard to eliminate in a few years.

48 hours before the race, the starting platform was destroyed by strong currents. International Swimming Federation open water rules require athletes to start the race with athletes jumping into the water from a fixed platform that is raised above the water. ISF had to make an exception in this case so the athletes waded into the water and swam out to the starting marker.

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – AUGUST 15: Sharon van Rouwendaal of the Netherlands celebrates her victory in the Women’s 10km Marathon Swimming on day 10 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Fort Copacabana on August 15, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)