COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States’ top open-water swimmers will chase national titles over a pair of distances next week at USA Swimming’s Open Water National Championships at Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club in Miromar Lakes, Florida.
The 10-kilometer national championships will be contested Friday, April 8, with the women’s race slated for 8 a.m. EDT, followed by the men at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, April 10, the 5K events open with the men at 8 a.m., followed by the women at 9:30 a.m. A live webcast of each race will be available online viausaswimming.org.
Olympic silver medalist Haley Anderson (Granite Bay, Calif./Trojan Swim Club) and Sean Ryan(Chattanooga, Tenn./Club Wolverine), both already qualified for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games in the 10K, are expected to highlight the field, alongside Olympians Andrew Gemmell (Wilmington, Del./Nathan’s Capital Swim Club) and Alex Meyer (Ithaca, N.Y./Tennessee Aquatics).
Additional USA Swimming National Team members expected to compete at Nationals include a trio of 2015 Pan American Games medalists – Eva Fabian (Keene, N.H./Unattached), Chip Peterson (Pine Knoll Shores, N.C./North Carolina Aquatic Club) and David Heron (Mission Viejo, Calif./University of Tennessee).
Also slated to swim are 2015 World University Games medalist and local standout Stephanie Peacock(Cape Coral, Fla./Mission Viejo Nadadores), plus 2015 FINA World Championships team members Emily Brunemann (Crescent Springs, Ky./Club Wolverine) and Ashley Twichell (Fayetteville, N.Y./Mission Viejo Nadadores).
In total, there are more than 100 entries slated for the two-day event, including more than 20 international standouts from 10-plus countries. Full start lists can be found online at usaswimming.org.
The Open Water National Championships will be held in conjunction with the 2016 Open Water Festival, which features a series of clinics and races, including an International Pro 10K, the Fran Crippen Sunset Mile and the Florida Swimming Open Water Championships.
Miromar Lakes hosted 2015 Open Water Nationals, with and Becca Mann and Jordan Wilimovsky taking the 10K national titles, and Anderson and Meyer earning the 5K victories.
Featuring the nation’s top open-water swimmers, 2016 Open Water Nationals will serve as the selection meet for the 2016 FINA World Junior Open Water Championships, as well as the 2016-17 Open Water National Team. A summary of the open water selection procedures is available at usaswimming.org.
Swimming news courtesy of USA Swimming.
Correction: “Nations” Capital Swim Club for Andrew Gemmell