The opening leg of the 2021 FINA UltraMarathon Swim Series took place today earlier this morning at Lake Ohrid in North Macedonia. There were four intended legs in the competition stages, however, the first leg that was set to take place in Lac Saint-Jean, Canada was cancelled.
France’s Axel Reymond won the men’s 25km race in a time of 5:10:31.00. Reymond is the reigning world champion in the 25km, having won gold at both the 2017 and 2019 world championships. Italy’s Edoardo Stochino finished 1 second behind Reymond to grab the silver medal. Stochino won his 15th FINA UltraMarathon Swim Series medal (3 gold, 9 silver, 3 bronze) with his performance this morning. Macedonia’s Evgenij Pop Acev won his 17th FINA UltraMarathon Swim Series medal (2 gold, 7 silver, 8 bronze) by placing 3rd.
Marc-Antoine Olivier, a two-time French Olympian in the 10km open water event, finished in 6th place. Olivier won the bronze medal in the 10km at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, and recently placed 6th in the same event at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
Top 10 Finishers – Men’s 25km
| 1. Axel Reymond (FRA) | 5:10:31.00 |
| 2. Edoardo Stochino (ITA) | 5:10:32.00 |
| 3. Evgenij Pop Acev (MKD) | 5:10:34.50 |
| 4. Marcel Schouten (NED) | 5:10:42.90 |
| 5. Matias Diaz Hernandez (ARG) | 5:11:46.20 |
| 6. Marc-Antoine Olivier (FRA) | 5:13:50.70 |
| 7. Francesco Ghettini (ITA) | 5:16:49.40 |
| 8. Franco Ivo Cassini (ARG) | 5:17:46.40 |
| 9. Matthieu Magne (FRA) | 5:19:39.90 |
| 10. Aleksandar Ilievski (MKD) | 5:39:18.10 |
Top 10 Finishers – Women’s 25km
On the women’s side, France took the top two podium spots. Oceane Cassignol dominated the field, winning the race by almost 30 minutes with a final time of 5:16:39.30. Caroline Laure Jouisse, who’s competed at several FINA Marathon World Swim Series, placed 2nd in 5:45:42.20. Pilar Geijo, who has been competing internationally in open water races since 2000, placed 3rd in 5:47:21.40. There were only four female athletes that finished this race.
| 1. Oceane Cassignol (FRA) | 5:16:39.30 |
| 2. Caroline Laure Jouisse (FRA) | 5:45:42.20 |
| 3. Pilar Geijo (ARG) | 5:47:21.40 |
| 4. Samira-Svea Erhart (GER) | 6:24:45.20 |
The next FINA Ultramarathon Swim Series competition will take place in Capri/Napoli, Italy on September 5th.
It looks like the men and women started simultaneously, is that right?
There were 8 women on the start list. Seven competed and four finished. On the men’s side I believe there were 12 starting and 10 finishing.
can’t imagine training for a 25km
According to results, 2nd place finisher was 1 minute behind, not 1 second as stated in the text of the article. Wow. 5+ hours of racing for a tight finish.
What happened in the women’s race? It is hard to comprehend how the men would be so close, and how it seems like there is usually somewhat of a lead pack close together at the finish. Just hard to fathom someone winning by almost a half hour. That is amazing
No, the men really did finish exactly one (1) second apart. Reymond finished in 5:10:31.00 (read aloud as 5 hours, 10 minutes, 31 seconds), while Stochino finished in 5:10.32.00 (read aloud as 5 hours, 10 minutes, 32 seconds).
And yes, Cassignol’s margin of win was jaw-dropping!
That woman recced!