2024 WORLD AQUATICS OPEN WATER JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Thursday, September 5th – Sunday, September 8th
- Alghero, Sardinia, Italy
- Open Water
- SwimSwam Preview
- Day 1 Recap
- Start Lists/Results
On the heels of Claire Stuhlmacher earning open water gold on day one in Sardinia, teammates Claire Weinstein and Brinkleigh Hansen followed suit with podium-topping performances.
Olympic silver medalist Weinstein of Sandpipers of Nevada touched the time pad first in the girls’ 7.5k final, separating herself from the field by just under 3 seconds.
Clara Martinez de Salinas Pena of Spain was the next to finish for silver while Hungarian Napsugar Nagy rounded out the podium.
Weinstein’s teammate Daisy Collins placed 4th just about a second outside of a medal.
On her performance, Weinstein stated, “I’m glad I was able to put up the win for Team USA.
“I knew it was going to be hard at the end because I was out in front for most of the race. I was just trying to get my hand on the wall first and I’m glad it turned out that way.
“It means a lot to see everyone swim so well. I try to help the younger girls as much as possible. The results today show the trajectory that America has in this sport. I’m really excited for the future.”
Hansen of St. Petersburg Aquatics grabbed the gold in the girls’ 5k final ahead of Hungary’s Anna Bartalos who settled for silver.
Mahila Spennato of the host nation bagged the bronze.
Hansen said of her strategy in the final push to the end, “I just believed in myself and was telling myself, ‘I know I can do this; this is what I’ve trained for.’ I wanted to put that to the test and see how much I could catch up…and I caught up. I am really happy.
“There is no better feeling than wearing that USA cap and supporting Team USA. It was a really hard race, but I enjoyed it because of all the people I was racing. Everyone has been so nice and supportive.”
Quotes courtesy of USA Swimming.
