The inaugural Telkom SA National Open Water Championships is set to take place at the picturesque Mofam River Lodge near Elgin in the Western Cape this weekend, in a programme featuring 10km, 5km and 3km events.
Nestled deep in the Elgin Valley, this unique venue is sure to become a favourite among the close-knit South African open water swimming fraternity in the future.
With open water swimming set to make its debut at the 2008 Beijing summer Olympic Games as the Olympic Marathon Swimming event (10km), the significance of the event has risen as South Africa’s leading open water swimming athletes compete for a place on the SA team that will contest the 5th FINA World Open Water Championships, taking place in Seville, Spain, during the first week in May.
The event has also attracted a strong international contingent from the British Isles, with British Swimming set to use the event as their final eliminator for their team selection to Seville.
Visiting athletes include Cassandra Patton, the 10km silver medalist from M2007, and versatile talents like Keri-Ann Payne (GB), who originates from Johannesburg, and is sure to make her presence felt.
They are sure to be met with some tough competition as the likes of Natalie du Toit (WPA), Velia Janse van Rensburg (EPA) and Louise Smyth (FS) take up the challenge in the 10km event.
In the shorter 5km event, there is a dearth of talent lead by Yolandi van der Merwe (WPA) and Rene Warnes (KZN), all sure to be up to the challenge.
The event will be run in accordance with FINA & SSA rules, and is set to take the discipline of open water swimming to another level domestically.
While South Africa is a world leader in the hosting of recreational open water swimming events, the rapid maturity of the discipline internationally in the recent past has meant that regulation at the top end of the sport domestically is inevitable.
It is for this reason that the Federation has introduced a "stand alone" event. In the past three years, open water swimming has been included in the SA B Nationals and the Telkom SA National Aquatic Championships as a championship event.
The complex method of Olympic selection begins in Seville for the Olympic Marathon Swimming event, where the top ten finishers will automatically gain selection to the Beijing showpiece.
The host country China, along with the respective continental champions will add a further five names to the list and then on May 31, at the Olympic venue, the final eliminator will take place whereby the top nine finishers will gain selection. Seville is the only event through which any participating country can gain two participants in the Olympic event.
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