LEN Open Water Cup, Leg 4: Star-Studded Field Gathers In Piombino

Courtesy: LEN

No stopping in the LEN Open Water Cup, one week after the leg in Barcelona, a star-studded field  is coming together once more, featuring Olympic, world and European medallists, this time in  Piombino.

Piombino welcomes back Europe’s best open water swimmers: though it’s traditional stop for the LEN  Open Water Cup, the Sunday competitions’ line up more stars than ever.

Among the men, Italy’s king of the distance, Olympic bronze medallist and reigning European champion  Gregorio Paltrinieri will head a 10 men strong host squad, while Olympic silver medallist and 5km world  title-holder Kristof Rasovszky is the leading name among the Hungarians who also entered 10 male  swimmers for this leg. The Russians and the French show up in big numbers too and the Gaul team  includes the 25km European gold medallist Axel Reymond.

The women’s race may offer a great comeback: three-time world champion Aurelie Muller is set to swim  an open water race again. Gold medallist in the 10km both in 2015 and 2017, the Frenchwoman had to  leave her Olympics-related disappointment behind (she was disqualified in Rio despite finishing second,  then missed the cut for Tokyo by tenths of a second) and now she may have a fresh start in her once beloved discipline.

She faces some challenge, though, as the Italians showed some strength in the previous two legs (finished  1-2 in Ohrid and came 3-4th in Barcelona) and now they’ll send ten female warriors to the battlefield.  European silver medallist and Olympic 4Anna Olasz of Hungary will also make a shot on the medals  and the prize money coming with them.

>Altogether 54 men and 40 women from 14 countries will take part in the hunt on Sunday – the start is set  at 9.30 in the morning.

LEN Open Water Cup, Season 2021 

• Leg 1: 14 August – Ohrid (MKD) 

Winners: Marc-Antoine Olivier (FRA) & Martina de Memme (ITA)

• Leg 2: 19 September – Rijeka (CRO) 

Cancelled

• Leg 3: 25 September – Barcelona (ESP) 

Winners: Florian Wellbrock (GER) & Jeanette Spiwoks (GER)

• Leg 4: 3 October – Piombino (ITA) 
• Leg 5: 9 October – Alghero (ITA)