2024 PARIS SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES
- Pool Swimming: July 27 – August 4, 2024
- Open Water Swimming: August 8 – 9, 2024
- La Défense Arena — Paris, France
- LCM (50 meters)
- Meet Central
- Full Schedule
World Aquatics announced the official start lists for the 2024 Olympic open water races on Tuesday, with a total of 57 athletes set to contest the 10km events on August 8 and 9 (likely) in the Seine River.
The qualifiers include 13 swimmers who gained entry into the event by virtue of their performances in either the 800 or 1500 freestyle in the pool, including a loaded group on the men’s side.
Felix Auboeck, Guilherme Costa, Daniel Wiffen, Kuzey Tuncelli, Emir Batur Albayrak and David Johnston qualified in the men’s 800 free, while five others, Kim Woomin, Henrik Christiansen, Victor Johansson, Ahmed Jaouadi and Carlos Garach Benito, earned a spot in the 10km by virtue of their times in the 1500 free.
Wiffen is the #1 ranked swimmer in the world this season in the men’s 800 and 1500 free, while the 16-year-old Tuncelli is fresh off smashing the World Junior Record in the 1500 free in 14:41.89 at the European Junior Championships last week, ranking him #4 globally.
The women’s field only had two pool qualifiers, Leonie Märtens and Ginevra Taddeucci, with other notable names in the field including defending Olympic champion Ana Marcela Cunha, the 2022 and 2024 world champion Sharon van Rouwendaal, 2023 world champion Leonie Beck, and American Katie Grimes.
OLYMPIC OPEN WATER WOMEN’S FIELD
| COUNTRY |
CONFIRMED ATHLETES
|
| AUS | |
| AUS | |
| BRA | |
| BRA | Viviane Jungblut |
| CAN | Emma Finlin |
| CHN | Xin Xin |
| ESP | |
| ESP | |
| FRA | |
| FRA | |
| GBR |
Leah Phoebe Crisp
|
| GER | Leonie Beck |
| GER | Leonie Märtens |
| HUN | Bettina Fabian |
| ITA | |
| ITA | |
| JPN | Airi Ebina |
| MEX |
Martha Sandoval Ayala
|
| MON | Lisa Pou |
| NED | |
| PER |
Maria Alejandra Bramont-Arias
|
| POR | Angelica Andre |
| USA | Mariah Denigan |
| USA | Katie Grimes |
In addition to the loaded group of pool swimmers, the men’s field features defending Olympic champion and 2023 world champion Florian Wellbrock, 2022 world champion Gregorio Paltrinieri and 2024 world champion Kristof Rasovszky.
The men’s field will feature six of the top 11 swimmers in the 1500 free this season: Wiffen, Paltrinieri, Tuncelli, Wellbrock, Hungary’s David Betlehem, and Jaouadi.
OLYMPIC OPEN WATER MEN’S FIELD
| COUNTRY |
CONFIRMED ATHLETES
|
| AUS | Kyle Lee |
| AUS | Nick Sloman |
| AUT | Felix Auboeck |
| AUT | Jan Hercog |
| BRA | |
| CZE | Martin Straka |
| ECU |
David Andres Farinango Berru
|
| ESP | |
| FRA | Logan Fontaine |
| FRA | |
| GBR | Hector Pardoe |
| GBR |
Tobias Patrick Robinson
|
| GER | Oliver Klemet |
| GER | |
| GRE |
Athanasios Charalampos Kynigakis
|
| HUN | David Betlehem |
| HUN | |
| IRL | Daniel Wiffen |
| ISR | Matan Roditi |
| ITA | |
| ITA | |
| JPN |
Taishin Minamide
|
| KOR | Kim Woomin |
| MEX |
Paulo Strehlke Delgado
|
| NAM | Phillip Seidler |
| NOR | |
| POL | Piotr Wozniak |
| SWE | |
| TUN | Ahmed Jaouadi |
| TUR | |
| TUR | Kuzey Tuncelli |
| USA | David Johnston |
| USA | Ivan Puskovitch |
Optimism is growing for the Seine River being safe enough to host the open water events after conditions improved in recent tests, but Paris 2024 organizers have announced that the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, the site of rowing and canoeing, will serve as Plan ‘B’ if the river’s water quality is sub-par.
Does anybody know when pool event start lists will be released? Will SwimSwam be creating a projected timeline like US Trials?
Kudos on OW coverage SS!! Hope this starts a much needed trend. Would love race day article so those of us watching the races – also for World Cups – can comment.
Request an article discussing the Seine river current and how it will affect the swimmers? Heard triathlon coaches Olav Alexsandr Bu and Mark Allen bring up the issue.
It could be nice to stay and compete a little longer, but let’s face it, none of these guys are serious medal threats: OW is 90% about experience, which these guys lack, and it requires a much more tactical and “hands-on” approach than pool swimming. It’s basically just as much about wrestling in the water and finding the best path around the buoys as actual swimming.
I think this is popular because open water is after the pool events so it’s a free hit. Lets face it the open water event is like eating burger when you have steak at home.
Joke’s on you, I like burgers more than steak.
Awesome for the sport to get Kuzzy & Wiffen – but how the mixed 4x1500m isn’t in the olympic open water program is beyond me it’s an epic event – those kind of inclusions are simple & the sort of thing that’ll get most world class distance pool swimmers on the pontoon including Ledecky. But instead in 2028 we’re stuck with Flag Football & Lacrosse – what a wasted opportunity what’s next America Pickleball & Cornhole?
Moesha Johnson from Australia qualified for the 1500m.
The article was listing open water swimmers who qualified BECAUSE of their pool performances (a new thing that started this year). Johnson qualified for open water normally, not just because of her pool performance.
I thought one had to qualify at the 2023 (Grimes) or 2024 (Denigan) World Aquatics Championships in the 10 k open water competition.
Yes that was 2 ways to qualify for Paris Olympic Openwater race but there was a 3rd avenue, provided your country did not have 2 athletes of either sex already qualified through the Openwater avenues you said, they could enter any qualified Paris Olympic pool swimmers swimming events 800free or 1500 free – still only 2 athletes per country per sex in total.
This was not something I had heard of until the last few months, was this always an option or something WA added late?
Dan, the Pool Swimmers, Openwater qualification option, was announced before 2023 Openwater World Champs so it’s been around for some time but probably more common knowledge through Openwater circles rather than the pool community 🤷.
They did.
Johnson came 4th in Doha and automatically qualified through that. Mariah Denigan qualified in that same race by coming 6th.
But countries now have an option to enter pool swimmers, which is explained in the article.
Moesha Johnson and Chelsea Gubecka qualified for Paris through 10k open water at World Championship.
All of Australia’s open water entrants qualified via open water pathway. Moesha Johnson subsequently, at trials, qualified for the 1500m as well.
I like the that pool swimmers can also swim the open water event as well, I would like to see in the future that these swimmers would have to have participated in at least 1 WC event, World Champs or Continental Champs (Euro/SA Champs/African/Pan-AM etc) open water event.
World Aquatics (and athletes and spectators alike) are hoping, that from this participation in Paris, that many of the distance pool swimmers enjoy themselves enough to start taking on the world cup stops of the Openwater scene. One can only hope this is the case 🤞. Another exciting twist in an ever unpredictable Openwater race scene.
This uptake of Openwater spots by the pool swimmers is very encouraging to me, I like it. I do worry about Tuncelli being so young and taking on the 10km however (less about the distance , just the physicality of it) hope it doesn’t knock the stuffing and confidence out of him.
Who are we all backing? The French at home in the Men’s?… Read more »
I am not German, but I like Wellbrock’s stroke mechanics and kick, so I vote for him.
Undoubtedly a beautiful stroke and Wellbrock is certainly in with a big chance. Mens race does not seem as clear cut as previous years, as I think there is any number of Men that could win it on their day, add to that 1 or 2 Pool Swimmers that could throw a spanner in the works as well.
I could see either Frenchman, either Hungarian, either Italian as well as Wellbrock, Pardoe or 1 of the Aussies taking the win but wouldn’t bet against Wiffen either. But if I had to choose just 1 name, I am going to say Olivier at home. Can’t wait, so excited for this race.
Olivier winning would give him a 2nd medal 8 years after his first while Wellbrock could defend his title.
Wellbrock was head and shoulders above the field in 2021 Olympics and again in 2023 world champs, I am not sure that we have seen a tapered Openwater swim from him since, he has had the pleasure of being able to maximise volume and training toward this swim in Paris for the last 12-18 months so a lot of predictions are pure guesswork surrounding him but no question he is a serious threat (if not, the man to catch).
Yes, if I were an elite open water swimmer, I would be a bit perturbed that some pool swimmers who have never done an open water race get to compete in the Olympics in the event. It’s like throwing the 10000 meter runners from track in the marathon. It’s a completely different sport.
I think most Openwater swimmers are revelling in the spotlight that these pool swimmers will bring and the opportunity to show how different the 2 events really are. If they get to swim in the Seine with the currents, the different nature of the events will be magnified and highlighted even more so.
The Openwater scene can be brutal in the water (just ask Hector Pardoe about his Tokyo campaign 😢) but as a whole, it is a very friendly community that will welcome the Pool folk with open arms.