Westside Christchurch swimmer, Bianca Monaco, takes Gold again at Sorrento

16 November 2022

The Open Water Swimming (OWS) Series round 3 brought over 500 swimmers down to Sorrento Beach. This round had lots to offer from the Western Australia 5km State Championships to public individual and relay events. The sun was shining, and the wind picked up during the morning which made the conditions a little tricky, however it was a great day for everyone!

In the Western Australian 5km State Championships, we saw 100 swimmers competing. Out of the Elite athletes, touching first with a time of 58:28.3 was 21-year-old, Byron Kimber (Westside Christchurch Aquatic Club, c: Jon Harrison). Coming in second was North Coast swimmer, Kaiden Richings (c: Ian Mills) with a time of 59:56.6 and in third place was Xavier Collins (Westside Christchurch Aquatic, c: Jon Harrison) with a time of 1:02:39.7. 

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Left: WA 5km Champion, Byron Kimber after finishing the race. Right: Chloe Truscott, Bianca Monaco and Rosie Wilson.

Taking first place in the female Elite was Bianca Monaco (Westside Christchurch Aquatic, c: Jon Harrison) finishing at 1:03:07.5. Chloe Truscott (North Coast Swim Club, c: Ian Mills) finished second with 1:04:46.8. Chloe described the conditions as “not too bad, it wasn’t as cold as I thought so that was nice, but it was pretty choppy on the far side”. The water temperature turned out to be 19 degrees, which gave our state swimmers the option to wear a wetsuit. Rosie Wilson (North Coast Swim Club, c: Ian Mills) took third place, finishing at a time of 1:07:13.8. The three open water female champions, Bianca, Chloe and Rosie finished first, second and third respectively at both 7.5km and 5km WA State Championships. 

Chloe Truscott
Our MC, Will Rollo, interviewing Chloe Truscott.

In the 5km, the swimmer who finished closest to the time of 1:18.10.9 won a money prize. Out of 180 swimmers, Niamh Dickson was the lucky winner! She finished with a close time of 1:18.10.6. Congratulations Niamh!

Our relays gave community swimmers the option to compete in a Duo (2 swimmers completing 2km each) or a Team (4 swimmers completing 1km each). This new concept is a great way to get friends and family to compete together. Each individual relay has the choice as to how they want to complete the 4km distance (8 laps of a 500m course). Mullaloo and Coogee are the next upcoming events that the relays are available to the public.

Swimming WA are grateful for the City of Joondalup for their support and generosity to ensure the event ran successfully. City of Joondalup Councillor, Christine Hamilton-Prime, joined us on the day to congratulate our award/prize winners. Additionally, we would like to thank Wase Timing, RD Events, HMP, Sorrento Surf Life Saving Club and North Coast Swim Club for their assistance during the day.

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Many volunteers gave up their time to help at the event and we couldn't thank them enough. A special thanks to our technical officials; Robyn Arblaster, Ray Pearce, Caron Bennier, Kylie Baker, Steve Jones, Michelle Horsham, Sarita Bennett, Deb Doody, Ross Rogers, Gregory Wilson, Elizabeth Fu and John Main.

Our official photographer for the OWS Series, The Nomad Company has captured some incredible shots from the weekend. To view the photos and results from Round 3: Sorrento, click here.

Be there soon Bunbury! OWS Series is coming to you, for round 4 on Saturday, 26 November. This round will feature the Western Australia 10km State Championships. Proudly presented by City of Bunbury. For more information on the OWS Series Round 4: Koombana Bay, Bunbury, click here. #comeswimwithus. 

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