Feb 3, 2024 at 10:34 AM Update: 38 minutes ago
Sharon van Rouwendaal became world champion in the 10 kilometers in open water for the second time in her career on Saturday. In Doha, the Dutch won with a minimal lead over María de Valdés.
In addition to the world title, thirty-year-old Van Rouwendaal is now also certain of participating in the Olympic Games in Paris. She hopes to go for her third Olympic medal there. She previously won gold (in 2016) and silver (in 2021).
In the nerve-wracking final sprint, Van Rouwendaal finished slightly ahead of De Valdés. The Dutch finished a fraction ahead of the Spanish after 1 hour, 57 minutes and 26.8 seconds. Last year, Van Rouwendaal finished joint fourth at the World Championships after a photo finish. In 2022 she won her previous world title.
Behind Van Rouwendaal and De Valdés, the Portuguese Angélica André finished third. Moesha Johnson of Australia came fourth. Johnson is a good acquaintance of Van Rouwendaal. The two train together in Magdeburg, Germany. Van Rouwendaal wants to continue training there until the Games.
After that, Van Rouwendaal wants to take things a little easier and return to the Netherlands. Van Rouwendaal went abroad at a young age and trained from 2013 to 2020 with French coach Philippe Lucas, who is known for his spartan training regime. She now trains with coach Bernd Berkhahn.
Sharon van Rouwendaal with training buddy Moesha Johnson. Photo: AFP
Van Rouwendaal was constantly at the front
Van Rouwendaal had already made it known in advance that she does not see the World Cup as a snack in the Olympic year and lived up to those words from the start. She was constantly at the front from the first second and regularly took the initiative.
For example, after more than an hour, Van Rouwendaal tried to swim away from her competitors, of whom the German world champion Leonie Beck was only in fifteenth position. That attempt was unsuccessful, because the Frenchwoman Lisa Pou, swimming for Monaco, overtook her.
Van Rouwendaal took the lead again on the penultimate lap. In the last lap, the woman from Baarn was joined by her training buddy Johnson, who continued and created a gap with the rest in no time. Van Rouwendaal led the chase, but was passed by De Valdés.
At the last buoy, a group of five swimmers turned around towards the finish. Van Rouwendaal followed Johnson, who seemed tired. Van Rouwendaal still had energy and gave himself the boost he dreamed of on the way to Paris.
Joy for Sharon van Rouwendaal after the finish in Doha. Photo: Reuters
Image: Reuters
Read more about:
SwimmingSharon van RouwendaalWorld Championship swimming
2024-02-03 09:34:17
#Van #Rouwendaal #conquers #world #title #open #water #Games #Sports
