Ana Marcela Cunha, the reigning world 25 km champion from Brazil, is always tough down the stretch. She has that unteachable competitive spirit that propels her forward when going goggle-to-goggle against her rivals.

And it served her well in the FINA 10km Marathon Swimming World Cup race in Cancun, Mexico yesterday where she won a close race over Germany’s Angela Maurer and Italy’s Martina Grimaldi as well as several other Olympians and top pros.

Photo by Dr. Jim Miller of the FINA Sports Medicine Commission.

Copyright © 2012 by Open Water Source