The 2008 Beijing Olympic 10K Marathon Swim was in a flat-water rowing basin. The 2012 London Olympic 10K Marathon Swim was in the flat-water Serpentine, a man-made lake in London. But the 2016 Rio Olympics will be in Copacabana Beach, facing the unpredictable Atlantic Ocean.
The conditions can be rough and bumpy; turbulent and lumpy; wavy and windy. As open water swimmers know well, the rough water conditions present problems for some and opportunities for many.
FINA has not yet decided where the 2016 Olympic 10K Marathon Swim qualification race will be held or what the qualification process will be. The FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and TOWSC Commission will discuss the qualification race and process in Hong Kong in October. Then the FINA Bureau, based on the recommendations of the TOWSC, will finalize the proposal to the International Olympic Committee sometime in 2014.
Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.