Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

It was always the dream of Pilar Geijo to become the number 1 ranked marathon swimmer on the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix circuit. She really started to blossom when she met Diego Tricárico, who is now her husband and coach.

Tricárico and Geijo travel the world together, working extraordinarily well together, both on land and during arduous marathon swims. “He knows me. He loves me. He knows what I want and I need,” says Geijo.

“I always want to give her the truth. She needs to know exactly what is happening during the race and on the water,” Tricárico explained in response.

Tricárico rarely sits down during her 7-, 8-, 9-hour marathon races, always vigilant as he carefully monitors her rivals, their moves and the dynamic conditions out on the water. He frequently gives hand signals and writes succinct messages on a white board as she also provides him with feedback.

Not only is the communication exact and informative, but it is always gentle when necessary and honest as required. Gentle, truthful, caring and loving. When Pilar finally reached the pinnacle of the FINA Open Water Swimming Grand Prix circuit, they got matching tattoos on their wrists that says “Open water world rank #1.”

“It was a dream all of my life that I could share with Diego. We made a vow that if I won [the Grand Prix title], we’d get a tattoo for our memories.”

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