Marathon Swimming

Marathon swimming is also referred to as open-water swimming, as it is held in an open body of water, as opposed to a pool. The discipline made its Olympic début at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, with a single 10 km open water race for men and women. Marathon swimming has been contested at the World Aquatics Championships since 1991, where men and women race over 5 km, 10 km, and 25 km. Open-water swimming has been around much longer than that, however, as many races in the 19th and early 20th century were held in open water, including the swimming events at the 1896, 1900, and 1904 Olympic Games.

The Netherlands tops the discipline’s medal table, with four medals and three golds, led by swimmer Sharon van Rouwendaal, with a gold and a silver medal. Thomas Lurz is the only male swimmer with two medals, a silver and a bronze.

Marathon swimming is not considered a separate sport but rather a discipline of swimming, or technically aquatics, and as such is governed by the Fédération internationale de natation (FINA). FINA was formed on 19 July 1908 in London and has 209 affiliated nations as of 2022.