Iron-strong Van Rouwendaal swims to second Olympic title in open water

Sharon van Rouwendaal won gold on Thursday in the 10-kilometre open water swimming at the Olympic Games. The thirty-year-old Dutch woman crossed the finish line first in the Seine in Paris. For Van Rouwendaal, it is her second gold Olympic medal.

The open water swimmers jumped into the Seine from the iconic Pont Alexandre III bridge at 7:30am on Thursday and were presented with tough conditions. The swimmers struggled with the strong countercurrent in the Parisian river.

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Van Rouwendaal was part of the leading group from the start. After several attacks by several swimmers, a leading group consisting of Van Rouwendaal, Moesha Johnson and Ginevra Taddeucci emerged after 7 kilometers. This made it clear that the trio would compete for Olympic gold.

The Dutchman had a powerful attack in store just before the finish and left Johnson and Taddeucci behind. The iron-strong Van Rouwendaal then touched first, in a time of 2 hours, 3 minutes and 34 seconds.

Van Rouwendaal thus lived up to her status as top favorite. In the run-up to the Games, she had already shown that she was in top form. Earlier this year, she won gold at the World Championships in Doha in both the 5 and 10 kilometers.

Van Rouwendaal also won gold in Rio

For Van Rouwendaal it is her second Olympic title in the 10 kilometers, after her gold medal at the Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. Five years later, the Baarn native missed out on gold in Tokyo and had to settle for a silver medal.

The gold race could have been Van Rouwendaal’s last trick at the Games. After the tournament in Paris, the Dutch woman will return to the Netherlands after sixteen years and take it easy. The next Games will be in four years, in Los Angeles.

It was unclear for a long time whether open water swimming could take place in the Seine. The iconic Parisian river was far from clean enough to swim in towards the Games. During the Games, several swimmers’ training sessions were cancelled.

Sharon van Rouwendaal has won gold in the 10 km open water swimming at the Olympic Games in Paris. She defeated Moesha Johnson (Australia) and Ginevra Taddeucci (Italy) in the much-discussed Seine with a firm and well-timed final sprint.

It is Van Rouwendaal’s third Olympic medal in the 10 kilometers. In Tokyo in 2021 she won silver and in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 she won gold, just like today. Never before has an athlete won gold twice in Olympic open water swimming.

The Dutch Olympic team now has ten gold medals. This equals the Tokyo Games. The Dutch record is twelve golds.

“This is very special,” Van Rouwendaal said shortly after the competition. “In May my world collapsed a little when my dog ​​died . I wanted to swim one more time, also for him. Give everything one more time at the Games.”

Swimming in the Seine

There was a lot of talk about swimming in the Seine during these Games. The water was too dirty for a long time, because a lot of dirty water had flowed into the river due to heavy rain showers in Paris.

Until shortly before the race, the water quality had to be measured. Eventually it was concluded that the Seine was clean enough for the 10 kilometers.

Van Rouwendaal did dive into the water yesterday for a reconnaissance. As a preventive measure, she was given antibiotics to prevent damage from bacteria in the water.

Such a reconnaissance is especially important to get a grip on the current in the course. Van Rouwendaal was therefore at ease in the river. A number of opponents skipped yesterday’s training and had more difficulty making the right tactical choices today.

Dominant

Van Rouwendaal’s start was not very impressive, but after a lap of swimming it started to run. For a long time she took the lead and set the pace.

The reigning Olympic champion, Brazilian Ana Marcela Cunha, was unable to keep up. Another favorite, Leonie Beck from Germany, soon lost touch.

Van Rouwendaal swam in front with Johnson and Taddeucci, who benefited from the current in their backs. Cunha fought the entire race to still reach the leading group.

In the final stages of the race, Van Rouwendaal distanced herself from Johnson and Taddeucci. She found the most favourable line, encountered the least resistance from the current and took the gold.