What if the open water swimming community – both locally and internationally – came together in a global celebration at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Summer Games?

The Attraction

With the world’s fastest open water swimmers competing for gold, silver, and bronze medals in the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim in the Pacific Ocean, the men’s and women’s open water swimming races are arguably the most unpredictable competitions during any Summer Olympic Games. Medals often come down to the very last strokes and photo finishes occur after athletes race shoulder-to-shoulder, often bumping and clashing into one another, for up to 2 hours.

The Gathering

After 10 km marathon swim is held and the medalists crowned, an exposition and symposium is held at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California.

The Mission

The mission of the Aquarium of the Pacific is to instill a sense of wonder, respect, and stewardship for the Pacific Ocean, its inhabitants, and ecosystems. Its vision is to foster an inclusive community that works together to create a sustainable future. The Aquarium is a community gathering place where diverse cultures and the arts are celebrated and a place where important topics facing the planet and the oceans are explored by scientists, policymakers, and stakeholders in the search for sustainable solutions.

The Setting

With 12,000 animals in more than 100 exhibits, the Aquarium celebrates the planet’s largest and most diverse body of water, the Pacific Ocean with galleries that represent the frigid waters of the Northern Pacific, the temperate Southern California/Baja region, and the warm coral reefs and lagoons of the Tropical Pacific.

In addition to its world-class animal exhibits and a new state-of-the-art immersive theater, the Aquarium offers educational programs for people of all ages from hands-on activities to lectures by leading scientists. Through these programs and a variety of multimedia experiences, the Aquarium provides opportunities to delve deeper into ocean science and learn more about Planet Earth.

The Presenters

The presenters can include marine environmentalists, scientists, businesspeople, authors, filmmakers, NGO and foundation leaders:

• Lewis Pugh, OIG, the United Nations Patron of the Oceans
• Ocean advocates such as Doug Woodring, Bruckner Chase, Michael Beanan, Alexandra Paul, Wallace J. Nichols, and David McGuire
• Ocean Elders including Gigi Brisson, American marine biologist Sylvia Earle, British business mogul Richard Branson, Canadian filmmaker James Cameron, and French oceanographer Jean-Michel Cousteau
• Interested finalists from the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim who can describe the race first-hand in a panel discussion
• Filmmakers, actors, protagonists, and cast from full-length movies and documentary films such as Nyad, Young Woman and the Sea, Vindication Swim, The Greatest Englishman, Defeating Oceans Seven, Kim Swims, Sea Donkey, and Becoming Cousteau
• Motivation speakers including Maarten van der Weijden, Vicki Keith, Antonio Argüelles, Jaimie Monahan, Bhakti Sharma, Lynne Cox, Craig Dietz, Ryan Stramrood, Spyros Chrisikopoulos, André Wiersig, Diana Nyad, Mariel Hawley Dávila, Shelley Taylor-Smith, and Kimberley Chambers 
• Physicians and educators including Peter Attia, MD, Angel Yanagihara, PhD, Otto Thaning, MD, and Dr. Roger Allsopp
• Data documentarists including Evan Morrison and Julian Critchlow
• Event directors including Wayne Riddin and Ram Barkai from South Africa, Morrie Chiang from Taiwan, Rafa Hernández from Mexico, Colin Hill from the UK, and Ned Denison from Ireland
• Para swimmers including Jonty Warneken and Ros Hardiman

The Agenda

• Presentations: Each presenter has 15 minutes to present on a topic of their choosing and specialty, TED Talk style.
• Networking: 15 minutes of networking between the sessions
• Tracks: Different tracks present different themes from marine environmentalism and open water swimming competitions to medical issues among athletes and motivational topics

The Vision

The open water swimming community can leverage the proximity of the Pacific Ocean, the majesty of the Summer Olympics, the can-do mindset of open water swimmers, human achievement in science and swimming, marine conservation, and storytelling and filmmaking in the open water to produce a landmark event at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games to celebrate the sport and drive awareness, action, and advancement in helping the world’s waterways become healthier.

© 2024 Daily News of Open Water Swimming

“to educate, enthuse, and entertain all those in venture beyond the shoreline“