Thomas Lurz (46, Germany, MSF bio here, World Aquatics bio here) joined an elite group of individuals who are inducted in both the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Lurz started representing Germany at the age of 21 at the 2001 FINA World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan and ended his career at the age of 35 when he competed at the 2015 World Cup in the UAE in the 10 km race. Along that 14-year journey around the world, he competed at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games in the 1500m freestyle and won a bronze medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics in the 10 km race. Over the course of his career, he won an astonishing 59 Olympic, World Championship, and World Cup medals, including 35 gold, 15 silver, and 9 bronze.

At the 2013 FINA World Championships in Barcelona, Spain, he won a bronze medal in the 5 km on July 20th, a silver medal in the 10 km race on July 22nd, a gold medal in the mixed team relay on the 25th, and a gold medal in the 25 km race on the 27th, proving his versatility from 1.5 km to 25 km.

His workout regimen was legendary, participating annually in the Battle Training where the German national team coach Dirk Lange would invite the best distance swimmers in the world where he explained, “The strongest will survive. We’re offering it for everyone who is not scared of pain.”

He also wrote the book Auf der Erfolgswelle schwimmen: Was junge Menschen wissen müssen, um erfolgreich zu werden (or Float on the Wave of Success: What Young People Need to Know For Success) together with Yasmin M. Fargel.

I once nominated Lurz for the World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year, ‘For a decade, he has remained at or near the top of the FINA and Olympic worlds of open water swimming. Fast and fit, strategic and savvy, Thomas Lurz has won numerous world championships, 2 Olympic medals while losing only a handful of races in nearly every condition and continent. But win or lose, he shakes the hands of his fellow competitors, smiles at the crowds, and remains a gentleman in all respects. His athleticism and preparedness, his demeanor on land and his actions in the water have set the tone for the top echelon of elite professional marathon swimmers. The younger swimmers look at his style and learn from his racing tactics. They understand his tenacity and they respect his statesmanship he has achieved as an ambassador of the sport. Eloquent and expressive, Lurz takes the time to be a role model while continuing to be among the fastest in the world. For his decade of success, for his Olympic silver medal performance, and for setting the standard of professionalism in the sport, Thomas Lurz is a worthy nominee for the 2012 WOWSA Open Water Swimming Man of the Year.“

I also remember seeing Lurz help volunteers and disabled athletes enjoy at the Praia Para Todos program in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Dual Inductees in the ISHOF and IMSHOF

1. Abdul Latif Abou Heif (Egypt)
2. Greta Andersen (Denmark/USA)
3. Paul Asmuth (USA)
4. Marilyn Bell (Canada)
5. Sandra Bucha Kerscher (USA)
6. Sid Cassidy (USA)
7. Cavill Family (Australia)
8. Florence Chadwick (USA)
9. James ‘Doc’ Counsilman (USA)
10. Lynne Cox (USA)
11. William Forest “Buck” Dawson (USA)
12. Penny Lee Dean, EdD (USA)
13. Bob Duenkel (USA)
14. Gertrude Ederle (USA)
15. Jon Erikson (USA)
16. Commander Gerald Forsberg, OBE, RN (Great Britain)
17. Dr. Benjamin Franklin (USA)
18. Mercedes Gleitze (Great Britain)
19. Chad Hundeby (USA)
20. Horacio Iglesias (Argentina)
21. Larisa Ilchenko (Russia)
22. Annette Kellerman (Australia)
23. John Kinsella (USA)
24. Irene van der Laan (Netherlands)
25. Stéphane Lecat (France)
26. Cliff Lumsdon, CM (Canada)
27. Thomas Lurz (Germany)
28. Marcella MacDonald, DPM (USA)
29. Kevin Murphy (Great Britain)
30. Keo Nakama (USA)
31. Cynthia Nicholas, CM (Canada)
32. Judith van Berkel-de Njis (Netherlands)
33. Martha Norelius (USA)
34. Dale Petranech (USA)
35. Claudio Plit (Argentina)
36. Walter Poenisch (USA)
37. Dr. Michael P. Read, MBE (Great Britain)
38. Desmond Renford, MBE (Australia)
39. Norman Ross (USA)
40. Charles “Red” Silva (USA)
41. Petar Stoychev (Bulgaria)
42. Alison Streeter, MBE (Great Britain)
43. Shelley Taylor-Smith (Australia)
44. Donald Watson (USA)
45. Captain Matthew Webb (Great Britain)
46. Maarten van der Weijden (Netherlands)
47. Johnny Weissmuller (USA)
48. Ferry Weertman (Netherlands)
49. Alick Wickham (Solomon Islands)
50. Monique Wildschut (Netherlands)
51. Herman Willemse (Netherlands)
52. George Young (Canada)
53. David Yudovin (USA)

Career Overview

2002 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt:Men’s 5 km

• Gold: Luca Baldini (Italy) 51:49.78
• Silver: Stefano Rubando (Italy) 51:51.20
• Bronze: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 51:52.43

2004 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships 10 km in Dubai, United Arab Emirates:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:54:38.0
• Silver: Alan Bircher (Great Britain) 1:54:44.8
• Bronze: Danill Serebrennikov (Russia) 1:55:02.8

2005 FINA World Championships 5 km and 10 km in Montreal, Canada:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 51:17.2
• Silver: Chip Peterson (USA) 51:18.8
• Bronze: Simone Ercoli (Italy) 51:18.9

• Gold: Chip Peterson (USA) 1:46:38.1
• Silver: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:46:45.2
• Bronze: Petar Stoychev (Bulgaria) 1:46:50.4

2006 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships 5 km and 10 km in Naples, Italy:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:04:32.3
• Silver: Chip Peterson (USA) 1:04:32.7
• Bronze: Simone Ercoli (Italy) 1:04:35.9

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 2:10:39.4
• Silver: Valerio Cleri (Italy) 2:10:40.5
• Bronze: Evgeny Drattsev (Russia) 2:10:40.7

2007 FINA World Championships 5 km and 10 km at St. Kilda Beach near Melbourne, Australia:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 56:49.6
• Silver: Evgeny Drattsev (Russia) 56:50.7
• Bronze: Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece) 56:56.6

• Gold: Vladimir Dyatchin (Russia) 1:55:32.52
• Silver: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:55:32.58
• Bronze: Evgeny Drattsev (Russia) 1:55:47.31

2008 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships 5 km and 10 km in Sevilla, Spain:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 54:57.3
• Silver: Vladimir Dyatchin (Russia) 54:58.8
• Bronze: Maarten van der Weijden (Netherlands) 54:59.8

• Gold: Vladimir Dyatchin (Russia) 1:53:21.0
• Silver: David Davies (Great Britain) 1:53:21.3
• Bronze: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:53:27.2

2009 FINA World Championships 5 km and 10 km at Ostia, Rome, Italy:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany)
• Silver: Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece)
• Bronze: Chad Ho (South Africa)

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany)
• Silver: Andrew Gemmell (USA)
• Bronze: Fran Crippen (USA)

2011 FINA World Championships 5 km and 10 km and 5 km Team Pursuit in Shanghai, China:

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 56:16.2
• Silver: Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece) 56:17.4
• Bronze: Evgeny Drattsev (Russia) 56:18.5

• Gold: Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece) 1:54:24.7
• Silver: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:54:27.2
• Bronze: Sergey Bolshakov (Russia) 1:54:31.8

• Gold: United States (Andrew Gemmell + Sean Ryan + Ashley Twichell) 57:00.6
• Silver: Australia (Melissa Gorman + Rhys Mainstone + Ky Hurst) 57:01.8
• Bronze: Germany (Jan Wolfgarten + Thomas Lurz + Isabelle Härle) 57:44.2

2013 FINA World Championships 10 km and 25 km and 5 km Team Pursuit in Moll de la Fusta, Barcelona, Spain:

• Gold: Spyridon Gianniotis (Greece) 1:49:11.8
• Silver: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 1:49:14.5
• Bronze: Oussama Mellouli (Tunisia) 1:49:19.2

• Gold: Thomas Lurz (Germany) 4:47:27.0
• Silver: Brian Ryckeman (Belgium) 4:47:27.4
• Bronze: Evgeny Drattsev (Russia) 4:47:28.1

• Gold: Germany (Thomas Lurz + Christian Reichert + Isabelle Härle) 52:54.9
• Silver: Greece (Antonios Fokaidis + Spyridon Gianniotis + Kalliopi Araouzou) 54:03.3
• Bronze: Brazil (Allan do Carmo + Samuel de Bonahttp://openwaterswimming.wiki/index.php?title= + Poliana Okimoto) 54:03.5

Versatility

Lurz won in all kinds of conditions and temperatures. A review of his 10 km winning times on the 2009 FINA 10KM Marathon Swimming World Cup circuit where his victories ranged from 1 hour 34 minutes to 2 hours 5 minutes, a remarkable 31-minute time differential:

• Setubal, Portugal: Thomas Lurz, 1:34:16
• Dubai, UAE: Thomas Lurz, 1:44:53
• New York, USA: Thomas Lurz, 1:47:41
• Lake Annecy, France: Thomas Lurz, 1:52:08
• Chun’An, China: Thomas Lurz, 1:55:10
• Copenhagen, Denmark: Thomas Lurz, 1:57.40
• Hong Kong: Thomas Lurz, 1:58:22
• Varna, Bulgaria: Thomas Lurz GER 2:01:31
• Shantou, China: Thomas Lurz, 2:03:15

Few open water swimmers have carried themselves with a competitive fire and dignity as Lurz did throughout his career. He was not only one of the best open water swimmers in the world, but he also one of the most highly respected for serving as an eloquent ambassador of the sport. He won everything in the sport from short sprint invitationals and national championships to world championship titles and Olympic medals. Yet he was always respectful of the sport and his competitors. Hard-nosed in the water, he was also a gentlemen who spoke highly of all his competitors.

I had the privilege of watching Thomas compete in several world championships, on the FINA pro circuit, and at the Olympics. Not only was he always well-prepared and fit, he swam so elegantly and thoughtfully. He always knew where his competition was and swam strategically. He drafted when he could and he led when he had to. He could sprint well and swam straight as an arrow. He was never dirty and did not resort to questionable physicality. He just out-swam and out-thought everyone.”

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