Graph courtesy of Atsunori Matsui of Naruto University of Education that shows how the number of drowning deaths is irreversibly correlated to the increasing percentage of schools with swimming pools in Japan. When a disaster hits a city of a country, sometimes politicians and residents are deeply moved and sufficiently motivated to make fundamental changes

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. Mark Warkentin gave everything he had to finish second in the 25 km world championships in 2008 only a few days after qualifying for the 2008 Olympic 10K Marathon Swim at the FINA Open Water Swimming Championships and 2008 Olympic qualification race in Seville, Spain. He came out of

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. After winning her fourth career aQuellé Midmar Mile in South Africa (2013, 2014, 2017, 2018), Ashley Twichell returned home and continues to train and race well. In Atlanta, Twichell broke 3-time Olympic gold medalist Brooke Bennett‘s 1500m record (16:15.58 from 1995) at the 2018 TYR Pro Swim Series competition

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. Jennifer Figge who has focused her stage swimmming career in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and in the Pacific Ocean. She once visited her goddaugher’s kindergarten class in Aspen, Colorado. The 5-year-olds were studying the oceans and were captivated by the concept of Figge’s stage swim across the Atlantic.

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. Samuel Richards, Jr. was a successful and prolific American open water swimmer who peaked around 100 years ago. He challenged himself and other leading swimmers along the East Coast. After he did not complete the 10-mile Boston Light Swim in 1907 as a member of the L Street Brownies

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. There are a wide variety number of awards given by myriad governing bodies and organizations throughout the open water swimming world. Below is a representative sampling of the myriad honors and awards given annually, not including those individuals and organizations honored by the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame:

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. “When I think of open water swimming in Ireland, I think of athletes with intense grit and wide smiles. I think of challenging sea swims and monumental channel attempts,” recalls Steven Munatones. Those kinds of athletes will be honored at the upcoming Irish Long Distance Swimming Association awards ceremony.

Courtesy of U.S. Masters Swimming, Sarasota, Florida. The 2018 United States Masters Swimming open water swimming championship series begins on the east coast in Virginia and ends on the West Coast in Oregon: U.S. Masters Swimming Middle-Distance Open Water National Championship 2 miles on May 27th organized by the Reston Masters Swim Team in Lake