DU TOIT MAKES LONDON DEBUT
Paralympic champion Natalie Du Toit will take on her able-bodied
counterparts at the FINA 10km Marathon Swimming World Cup
in London this weekend (Sunday 17 June).
Du Toit, who has already proved herself as a serious open
water prospect in her home country of South Africa, takes
a step towards achieving her goal of Olympic qualification
by competing on the international circuit.
The South African will face Britain's World Championship
silver medallist Cassie Patten as well as top Australian athlete
Trudee Hutchinson who is currently ranked top three in the
FINA series.
In the men's competition, Egyptian Mohamed Zanaty is one
of the favourites having finished top two for the last two
years in London while Britain's Alan Bircher, who won the
London leg last year, will be hoping to see a return to form
after a slow start to the open water season.
The FINA event is one of two international competitions taking
place at the London Regatta Centre in the Royal Albert Docks
this weekend, with the LEN (European) Open Water Swimming
Cup Leg (5km) also part of the two-day programme (Saturday
16 June).
Bircher and Patten open the weekend of competition in the
LEN 5km, and are joined by fellow Brits Kerri-Ann Payne, Simon
Panting, Richard Charlesworth, Rachel Jack and Alice McCall.
For Patten and Payne, the Festival of Open Water Swimming
is the third event in an intensive nine-day period of competition
that has seen the duo compete at the LEN event in Spain as
well as the Barcelona Mare Nostrum.
Patten, who won the LEN 10km event last year in London, is
looking forward to competing on home soil.
"I've only been competing in open water for just over
a year so I'm using every swim to gain experience before Beijing,"
she said. "There are people competing in the sport with
years of experience so it's difficult to predict how I'll
do.
"We'll be competing against a lot of the swimmers from
Seville and even Barcelona as quite a few teams are doing
the same route as us, but they're not looking forward to the
cold water in London.
"I'm used to swimming in cooler temperatures so I'm
really looking forward to coming back to England and it also
means my family are able to come and support me."
Competitors from more than 20 countries are taking part in
the Festival of Open Water Swimming, including teams from
Russia, Mexico, Argentina and Croatia.
The British 10km and 5km champions will be determined from
the World and European event while Britain's young swimmers
will be tested over a shorter 3km distance in the 3km Junior
International.
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