Weinstein Dominates U.S. 5K By 41 Seconds, Denigan Qualifies For Worlds After Missing 10K Spot

2025 Open Water National/Junior National Championships

• April 4-6, 2025
• Sarasota, Florida
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The 2025 Open Water National and Junior Championships wrapped up today in Sarasota, Florida. On the schedule was the women’s 5k race, with competitors swimming three loops around the red-marked course, as shown below.

Last year, Ichika Kajimoto of Japan won the 5k by 14 seconds, but this year, American Claire Weinstein had other plans. Best known for her speed in the 200, 400, and 800 freestyle pool events, Weinstein dominated the final lap to win by an impressive 41 seconds. She touched the pad with a time of 1:01:33, the only competitor to finish under the 1-hour, 2-minute mark.

Since Weinstein finished 2nd in the 10k on Friday, she has now qualified for the World Championships in both open water distances, which gave her the option to compete in one or both in Singapore this July. Weinstein has decided to compete only in the 10k, and as a result, Brinkleigh Hansen, the 10k winner, has been allotted Weinstein’s vacated spot on the 5k roster. Hansen opted not to race in today’s 5k race.

While Weinstein may not have as much international open water experience as some others, she dominated the 2023 World Cup stop in Funchal, winning the 10k by more than a minute and defeating then-defending World Champion Leonie Beck of Germany.

Weinstein trains with the Sandpipers of Nevada under the guidance of coach Ron Aitken. In September of 2023, she committed to continue her swimming career at Cal, where she is expected to join the Bears in the fall of 2025.

Kajimoto adds a silver medal to her gold from last year, finishing 2nd in a time of 1:02:14, narrowly edging out American Mariah Denigan, who clocked in at 1:02:15. Denigan, who trains with Indiana University, secured a spot at the World Championships in Singapore this summer with her 3rd-place finish, as she was the second-highest American finisher.

Denigan just missed out on qualifying for the 10k on Friday, finishing 3rd behind Hansen and Weinstein, only five seconds short of a Worlds berth in that event.

Denigan, unlike Weinstein, has been a clear open water specialist for some time. She finished 8th in the 10k at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, 6th in Doha, and 16th at the Paris Olympics. She also placed 15th in the 10k at the 2022 Worlds in Budapest. In the 5k, which is not an Olympic event, she was 18th in 2023 and 12th in 2024, and she did not race it in 2022.

Notably, three-time 10K national champion Katie Grimes, who began her collegiate career with the Virginia Cavaliers in January, did not compete again today.

Open water swimming at the 2025 World Championships will take place from July 14 to 19, with pool swimming beginning on the 26th.

Top 16 Finishers:

1. Claire Weinstein (Sandpipers Of Nevada) – 1:01:33
2. Ichika Kajimoto (Japanese Swimming) – 1:02:14
3. Mariah Denigan (Indiana University) – 1:02:15 (Qualified For U.S. World Championship Team)
4. Brooke Travis (TAC Titans) – 1:02:16
5. Misa Okuzono (Japanese Swimming) – 1:02:33
6. Abby Dunford (Unattached Canada) – 1:03:28
7. Becca Mann (TAC Titans) – 1:04:16
8. Laila Oravsky (Barrie Trojan Swim Club) – 1:04:17
9. Claire Stuhlmacher (Indiana University) – 1:04:17
10. Bella Tramontana (Sandpipers Of Nevada) – 1:04:23
11. Izzy Wilson (South Florida Aquatic Club) – 1:05:34
12. Karly Boles (Germantown Academy Aquatic Club) – 1:05:35
13. Paige Reilly (Unattached) – 1:05:36
14. Marlene Blanke (Villanova) – 1:05:37
15. Andrea Dworak (Rockville Montgomery Swim Club) – 1:05:39
16. Kai Flanagan (Unattached) – 1:06:02