Rhys' race to conquer the US
Swimming Western Australia
Published: Aug 29, 2012 05:08:45 PM
WA’s greatest open water export Rhys Mainstone has hit the open road once again as his competition calendar heats up for the summer. Rhys’ upcoming stint of open water races will take him to the Aloha State, Hawaii, before he sets en route to the City by the Bay, San Francisco.
Rhys will be focusing on backing up his double gold medal winning performance from the recent Oceania Championships to add another pleather of international medals to the mantelpiece.
The first competition on Rhys’ radar is the Maui Channel Swim on September 1st. This 10km relay race consisting of six swimmers will be a pleasant change from Rhys’ usual grueling 10km solo effort.
The competition promises to be a colourful and cultural affair, with the overall winning team taking home a carved koa wood Duke Bowl.
As always, Rhys can expect a healthy rivalry between the Australian and American Teams, but he’s not to be disheartened by the rivals’ home team advantage as the navigation and currents will be the deciding factor on the day.
Rhys will remain in Hawaii where he will tackle his second challenge, the Waikiki Rough Water Swim on September 3. A test of his endurance and recovery, Rhys will cross the 3.8km bay only two days after the Maui Channel Swim. Hopefully, the race day conditions don’t live up the competition name.
The last stop on Rhys’ US road trip is Tiburon, San Francisco. It is here that Rhys will partake in one of the most competitive and prestigious open water swims in the world, the Tiburon Mile. Participating swimmers include Olympic and World Champion swimmers from the USA, Russia, Australia, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico and Germany. Last year’s winner of the female division was none other than Australian Olympic representative Melissa Gorman.
Rhys will return to Perth a mere three days after the Tiburon Mile for the Energy Australia Short Course Championships on September 3rd. He will transfer his skills to the pool and race in the hotly contested 1500m on Sunday 16 September as well as relays for UWA Uniswim.
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