Swimming Australia's Open Water Swimming Camp - Recap!

Swimming WA, in partnership with Swimming Australia and WAIS, delivered an open water training camp for some of the best open water swimmers in Western Australia and South Australia over the weekend of 22-24 April!

Practical open water swimming sessions at Matilda Bay and Coogee Beach were offered alongside workshops on nutrition, pre-training activations and recovery. Open Water-specific pool sessions were also conducted at the Swimming Australia hub at HBF Stadium. WAIS Dietician, Emily Eaton, delivered a practical nutrition workshop including a supermarket visit and cook-off competition for open water swimmers to fine-tune their pre and post-competition fuelling, as well as ensuring their overall nutrition matched the demands of distance swimming training. Emily worked directly with the athletes to prepare and plan their meals with an understanding of variety and nutrient needs. WAIS physiotherapist, Chris Perrey, fine-tuned pre-training activations, working with the athletes to develop their own routine involving rollers, spikey balls, thera-bands and sticks. With injury prevention a priority for distance swimmers, the workshop proved very beneficial with athletes designing their own routines based on Chris’ recommendations.

Mel Tantrum, Swimming Australia’s State Technical Director for WA/SA and Head Open Water Coach for the upcoming FINA World Championships in Budapest, presented a workshop to prepare swimmers for international competition. With topics ranging from buoy turns, finishes, pack swimming, sighting and race strategies, athletes gained insights and an understanding of opportunities for national and international racing in the future. Greg Shaw, Swimming Australia’s General Manager for Performance Support, also provided an insight into what it takes to compete on the world stage.

WA coaches of the invited open water swimmers were encouraged to attend all sessions, led by Swimming WA’s Open Water Squad Coach Jason Evans. Also leading other sessions were Joel Ugarte (Marion, SA), with Jon Harrison (Westside Christ Church) assisting. Swimming WA’s Ben Harvey, Luke Gavin, Will Rollo, Jarrad Lawford and WAIS’s Will Scott all contributed to the camp planning and execution. Despite having to make significant adjustments mid-camp due to Covid, the athletes and coaches valued the camp and gained valuable open water knowledge and skills.

Athletes: