Lance Ogren, a retired 39-year-old firefighter from New York, won the 17.5-mile Ederle Swim in record time. Lance won in 5 hours and 10 minutes for his second victory in this race (also in 2008) while breaking his own men’s record. A slew of Triple Crown swimmers followed as the entire field finished in water […]

The untimely passing of Fran Crippen reminds us of the untimely passing of another American distance champion Steve Prefontaine. Different sports, different personalities, but similar types of champions who had similar work ethics while making themselves and others around them better. Not just medalists. Not just winners. Not just highly competitive athletes. But individuals who

Olympian Mark Warkentin shared a touching story about Fran Crippen. The story is typical of the hundreds of other warm memories that friends, teammates, competitors and coaches have of Fran, the young open water swimming star who was tragically lost yesterday, whether he was onshore, in the water, on the pool deck: “[At the FINA

A gentlemen. A hero. An inspiration. Fran Crippen leaves behind a legacy. Not only as a world-class athlete, but as someone you would be proud to have as a son, brother, teammate and friend. He was always there for his very close-knit family. He was always lending an ear and hand to friends. He was

A gentlemen. A hero. An inspiration. And a life well led, but cut down entirely too short. The open water swimming world has lost a gentlemen today. A genuine hero. And an inpiration: Fran Crippen. In the world of open water swimming, Fran stood out. Not because he won races. Not because he won both

19-year-old Lucas Ransom, a junior at University of California Santa Barbara, was a victim of a shark attack at the Vanderberg Air Force Base beach near Lompoc, California, 130 miles north of Los Angeles. The sudden attack came 100 yards from shore as the two friends were boogie-boarding. The Associated Press reported on the tragedy

Gusts up to 30 miles per hour created some surface chop, but Collis Williams has maintained his lead on Day 3 in the Tex Robertson Highland Lakes Challenge in Austin, Texas. Collis won the shortest leg (2 miles) of the 5-day race, in 43:05. His leading aggregate time for the 8.4 miles covered over the

The 2010 FINA 10KM Marathon Swimming World Cup series will culminate tomorrow in Fujairah in the UAE – and the races should be outstanding. In one corner is the series leader Olympian Ana Marcela Cunha of Brazil (106 points in the season). In the other corner is fast-approaching Olympian Angela Maurer of Germany (96 points).

On the first day of the Tex Robertson Highland Lakes Challenge in Austin, Texas, Collis Williams established his position in the lead with a time of 1:30:0 in the 3.75-mile Monster Challenge stage on Day 1. Sharon Smith is leading the women’s division with a time of 1:40:53. The Tex Robertson Highland Lakes Challenge is