ABU DHABI // Ferry Weertman and Sharon van Rouwendaal, gold medallists for the Netherlands in the men and women 10-kilometre swim at the Rio Olympics, will headline the field in the Abu Dhabi leg of the Fina 10km Marathon Swimming World Cup tomorrow.
The third staging of the event in Abu Dhabi has been moved from the Corniche Breakwater to the Emirates Palace hotel bay that will see 72 men and 54 women open-water swimmers compete for the titles.
For Weertman and Van Rouwendaal, it will be their first major race since their heroics in Rio.
Van Rouwendaal faces a rematch with Rachele Bruni, the Italian silver medallist at Rio and the winner of the inaugural race in Abu Dhabi when it was established in 2015.
Then two met in a minor race earlier this year in Hong Kong which Bruni won and Van Rouwendaal finished ninth.
“That was after the holiday break after the Rio Games but this is the first major race and I’m ready,” said Van Rouwendaal, who was a special invitee for the Abu Dhabi Swimming Festival last October.
“I had a dip on that occasion with a lot of other swimmers around me. The water was a bit warmer at that time of the year and here I’m now for a competition. Obviously looking forward to it.”
For Bruni, it is her third visit. She was a winner in 2015 and fifth behind France’s Aurelie Muller last year.
“I start every race wanting to win, like every other swimmer, but then it all depends on the day,” Bruni said when asked if her experience of returning for a third time would be of help.
Included in the women’s line-up are Muller and the Brazilian pair Poliana Okimoto Cintra and Ana Marcela Cunha, who finished second and third respectively 12 months ago.
Weertman was eighth last year in the men’s field and he faces five of those who finished ahead of him, including runner-up Jack Burnell.
“It’s my first 10km race after the Olympics and it will be nice to know where I stand,” Weertman said.
“I have been training hard to get back in shape. A lot of the swimmers are also coming after Rio. It’s going to be a tough race with all of them eager to win here.”
Despite winning the gold in Rio, Weertman has never been on podium in the World Cup.
“I hope I can do that this time around,” he said. “The World Cup races are different because it’s a larger group and it becomes that much harder to overtake when you are at the back. So, that’s going to be a challenge.”
Burnell will have something to prove after the Briton was disqualified for two yellow cards at Rio.
“I’m excited to be here to turn a new chapter in my career,” Burnell said. “The field here is really big and it makes a really good test for all the swimmers.
The beach will open from 9am when the organisers will conduct a variety of races for the amateurs and juniors before the main race at 3pm.
“This year the world race series coincides with the Abu Dhabi Swimming Festival and we expect more than 700 participants preceding the main race,” Talal Al Hashemi of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council said.
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