In the world of sports, there is no country like Australia. Per capita, no country is as successful in the summer Olympics as Australia has recently been. When they travel, the Aussies are tough competitors.

But nothing like home.

Conduct an international contest in the pool, life saving or open water in Australia, and the Aussies are nearly unbeatable. There is just something about the Aussie athlete who want to protect their turf, especially in the surf.

Down Under, western Australian Rhys Mainstone certainly rose to the occasion in his home turf, comfortably winning the 10 km showcase event at the BHP Billiton Aquatic Super Series Open Water Challenge in Perth today. He far distanced himself from visiting stars from New Zealand and the United States.

With a nearly 2-minute victory of another Aussie on a hot streak, Trent Grimsey, Mainstone is putting his stamp on the sport – as well as being $15,000 richer for the effort.

The results of the top 15 finishers, including 2-time Olympian Melissa Gorman who finished eighth overall and similarly dominated her foreign competition:

1. Rhys Mainstone 1:51:31
2. Trent Grimsey 1:53:18
3. Kane Radford 1:54:10
4. Joshua Richardson 1:54:12
5. Evangelos Tsirapidis 1:55:15
6. Codie Grimsey 1:55:54
7. Sam Sheppard 1:56:09
8. Melissa Gorman 1:56:49 (first female)
9. Alex Meyer 1:58:51
10. Paul Laver 2:00:46
11. Andrew Dunsdon 2:01:34
12. Heidi Gan 2:02:13 (2nd female)
13. Jess Walker 2:06:46 (3rd female)
14. Leah Cutting 2:10:13 (4th female)
15. Paul Newsome 2:12:44

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