Young Michelle Weber Is Growing Up
Michelle Weber was the first South African swimmer to finish the aQuellé Midmar Mile yesterday – as she was at the 2012 FINA World Junior Open Water Swimming 5 km Championships in Canada.Open water swimming is becoming a good way to see the world.
Compliments of 5-hour Energy, the 17-year-old will be flown over to compete in the Henley Mile in the United Kingdom in July.
“I am so stoked, I can’t believe I’ll be going over to compete at the Henley Mile, especially after my heart operation just a few months ago,” said Weber. “When I said before the event I might finish in the top five, I didn’t know whether I actually even had it in me so I am just so stoked that I came third behind Ashley [Twichell] and Keri Anne [Payne] who such great competitors,” she added.
Weber was drawn to the sport because she loves how everyone has a good time in open water swimming. “I am also attracted because open water swimming is so out of the ordinary. It is so different and original. I started out doing local one-milers and other open water swimming when I was 11 and have done the Midmar Mile 7 times now.”
She is also the Action Swimming Academy teammate of the men’s Midmar Mile winner Chad Ho. Working out together in Durban, she could not ask for a better teammate and Olympic role model. “Chad makes me want to be a better swimmer. We do the same workouts, but he sometimes goes at faster intervals. He motivates us and it would be good to follow in his footsteps.”
During their workouts, 23-year-old talks a lot in a good way. Weber explains, “Chad is a genuine person. He looks after us and mentors us. If something is wrong with our strokes, he tells us what we can do better.”
It is quite certain that Weber will only keep getting better.
Copyright © 2014 by World Open Water Swimming Association
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.
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