Around the lochs, docks and sea shores around the world, we hear that professional marathon swimmers are not doing ‘real open water swimming’ because they swim in packs or because they swim in loop courses or because they are not swimming in sub-50°F (10°C) water or because they are not facing Force 4, 5 or 6 conditions.

But taking a look at the 2008 Beijing Olympic 10K Marathon Swim race here, it is clear to us that these are mighty powerful swimmers who have greatly developed endurance, navigational IQ and speed.

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