With the water temperature dropping from warm high of 75°F (24.4°C) yesterday morning to a rather cool of 64°F (17.7°C), the women at today’s World 10K Open Water Swimming Championships were treated to a surprise.

But gold medalists from the previous FINA World Championships have tackled all kinds of conditions and circumstances.

The gold medal victors include the following athletes:

2000 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Honolulu
5K: Peggy Buchse (GER)
10K: Edith van Dijk (NED)
25K: Edith van Dijk (NED)

2001 World Swimming Championships in Fukuoka
5K: Viola Valli (ITA)
10K: Peggy Buchse (GER)
25K: Viola Valli (ITA)

2002 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Sharm el Sheikh
5K: Viola Valli (ITA)
10K: Britta Kamrau (GER)
25K: Edith van Dijk (NED)

2003 World Swimming Championships in Barcelona
5K: Viola Valli (ITA)
10K: Viola Valli (ITA)
25K: Edith van Dijk (NED)

2004 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Dubai
5K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
10K: Britta Kamrau (GER)
25K: Britta Kamrau (GER)

2005 World Swimming Championships in Montreal
5K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
10K: Edith van Dijk (NED)
25K: Edith van Dijk (NED)

2006 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Naples
5K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
10K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
25K: Angela Maurer (GER)

2007 World Swimming Championships in Melbourne
5K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
10K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
25K: Britta Kamrau-Corestein (GER) – shown above

2008 World Open Water Swimming Championships in Seville
5K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
10K: Larisa Ilchenko (RUS)
25K: Ksenia Popova (RUS)

2009 World Swimming Championships in Rome
5K: Melissa Gorman (AUS)
10K: Keri-Anne Payne (GBR)
25K: Angela Maurer (GER)

Copyright © 2010 by Steven Munatones