Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.
Is a new focus on open water swimming coming to the Americas? From a variety of perspectives, it appears so.
Colin Hill of the Great Swim Series talks about the Perfect Storm that has served as the catalyst for explosive growth in Great Britain – and the elements are coming together for a Perfect Storm in the Americas.
Below are examples of ten elements of the Perfect Storm brewing off the coast:
1. The grand televised success of the King and Queen of the Sea series in Brazil.
2. The retirement of Olympic gold medalist Aaron Piersol from the pool and his jump into the open water with a focus on Oceana and his Race for the Oceans.
3. The new World Junior Open Water Swimming Championships in Welland, Ontario, Canada
4. The explosive growth of open water swims from Mexico to the West Indies.
5. The upcoming documentary of the Ventura Deep Six.
6. The upcoming documentary of Swim 22 – four solo attempts of the Catalina Channel.
7. The global demand to swim around Manhattan Island Marathon Swim.
8. The establishment of new governing bodies, from the Farallon Island Swimming Association to the Lake Tahoe Swimming Association.
9. The marketing and organization of events from the H2Open Series to the Great Lakes Open Water Series and the Northwest Kingdom Open Water Swimming Association.
10. The establishment of global open water swimming conference from San Francisco to New York.
The winds are picking up, the waves are increasing, the Perfect Storm is coming…
Aaron Peirsol will always be remembered and revered for his accomplishments and attitude during his great pool swimming career, but at the age of 27, he has several decades in front of him where he can make an even larger, incredibly positive impact on the oceans and open water swimming through his actions with Oceana and the Race For the Oceans.
Video courtesy of Gold Medal Mel.
Copyright © 2011 by World Open Water Swimming Association