Ollie Signorini defended his title at the 52nd Waikiki Roughwater Swim held on Oahu this Labor Day morning, winning in 47:43 in a close battle with Honolulu local Riley Clinton who finished one second behind in 47:44. Chad La Tourette of California rounded out the podium in third in 48:09.
Signorini seems to have a lock on this event, also winning in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2022
Kathleen Hohwald of Los Angeles finished 10th overall and was the top woman in 51:10, improving from her third place position in 2022. Californian Catherine Breed was the second woman (and 17th overall) in 53:19 with Australian Suzanne Ryan finishing third and 20th overall in 54:41.
It is always interesting to see the top women swim competitively with the fastest men in mass participation events like the Waikiki Roughwater Swim. An experienced ocean swimmer like Hohwald, who trains at Tower 26 in Santa Monica, has the speed and tactical experience to draft off a pack of fast-moving men.
Some of the key tactics and strategies that women like Hohwald execute well include:
- standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the elite alpha males at the start
- sprinting off to a fast start with their heart rate increases quickly
- being able to manage the physicality at the start and around the first turn buoy
- knowing which men to optimally race with: slower men will not help, and the fastest man may not be optimal
- balance the advantages of drafting well with a high navigational IQ to select the best line to the next turn buoy and finish
- awareness of where the other top women are in the field, lead pack or trailing pack
Hohwald said, “I went out at very fast pace, and I just tried to stay on good feet. I tried to take a good line and nail the finish.”
Top 10 Finishers (of 712 total)
- Ollie Signorini 47:43
- Riley Clinton 47:44
- Chad La Tourette 48:09
- Ned Wieland 48:17
- Jarrod Poort 48:19
- Bill Thorley 48:36
- Duke Wieland 50:11
- Alex Kostich 50:12
- Knut Robinson 51:09
- Kathleen Hohwald 51:10
The full slate of results for the 52nd Waikiki Roughwater Swim is posted here.
Alex Kostich finished in the Top 10 yet again. The 53-year-old three-time winner remains competitive with athletes half his age [shown below with Hohwald after the 3.84 km race].
For a brief race introduction on the local KITV Island Television, visit here.
Many of the mainland and island swimmers had planned to also compete in the Maui Channel Relay, but with the recent fires on Maui, race director Ian Emberson cancelled this year’s event.
© 2023 Daily News of Open Water Swimming
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