Gemmell wins silver medal in men's 10K open water race

Andrew Gemmell won a silver medal in the men’s 10K open water race at the FINA World Championships on Wednesday. Gemmell, who was swimming near the back of the pack at the last buoy, surged in the final 650 meters, overtaking all but eventual champion Thomas Lurz of Germany. The medal was the first at a senior-level meet for the 18-year-old.

 

“I noticed it got a little choppy out there toward the end, but it didn’t really affect me at all,” said Gemmell.  “I  just tried to keep in my own zone and keep it smooth.”

 

U.S. teammate and Pan American champion Fran Crippen touched next, seeming to secure a two-three finish for Team USA. The finish was later protested by Italy and Greece, and the protest was accepted by the referee. It has since been appealed by the U.S., and the appeal has been sent to the FINA jury, who will rule tomorrow. A decision is expected around midday.

 

Entering the final 2K, Crippen was in striking distance, behind four to six swimmers, including Lurz and Valerio Cleri of Italy. In the final stretch, however, Crippen turned up the speed, cruising into medal-position.

 

“It was comfortable the whole time, really,” said Crippen.  “I was able to do some really good drafting, and I don’t think I’ve ever had a race where I drafted so much, so that was really exciting. I used a different tactic because I raced yesterday in the 5K, and I needed to race a little different today, a little smarter, and I was able to do that, so it was good. ”

 

“On the last lap, I was somewhere between 4^th and 8^th the whole time. The only thing I knew was that I didn’t want to take the lead until the last 500, so if I could stay in the four-five-six range and not take the lead and just draft, I thought I’d give myself a chance to win. That’s all I wanted was to just give myself a chance to win. I know Lurz is fast in the pool, but I’m pretty confident in my speed as well.”

 

On the women’s side, Emily Brunemann finished 24^th with a time of 2:02:06.6 while Eva Fabian came in 27^th with a time of 2:02:09.9  Both women swam near the front of the pack through the first two laps before falling back in the second half of the race. Brunemann, who finished ninth in the 5K on Tuesday, said fatigue was a factor.

 

“For my first World Championships, I was really happy with how I did,” said Brunemann. “With my 5K, I was happy with getting in the top 10, and then trying to come back and swim today was a lot harder than I had anticipated.  I felt great on the second lap, and then I just kind of hit a wall, so, there are definitely some things to change, but I’m happy with how I did.”

 

The World Championship in the women’s 10K went to Keri-Anne Payne of Great Britain, who led throughout and touched in 2:01:37.1. In second, finishing just nine-tenths later, was Russia’s Ekatarina Seliverstova (2:01.38.0). Rounding out the medal podium was Italy’s Martina Grimaldi (2:01:38.6).

 

For the women’s results, click here.

 

Open water action concludes on Saturday with the men’s and women’s 25K races. Emily Hanson and Eva Fabian will compete for the women, while Sean Ryan and Alex Meyer will represent the men’s team.

 

*Results for the Men’s 10K are unofficial, pending the decision of the FINA Bureau tomorrow. Times will also be available at that point, at www.omegatiming.com.