Seidler sets his mark

Namibian swimmer Phillip Seidler from Swakopmund has sets his mark at the 18 FINA World Championships 10km open water swimming events that were held on July 12 in Yeosu, South Korea.

Seidler competed against the world’s top long – distance swimmers and finished 32nd overall, with a time of 1:50:14 hrs. Seidler smashed his previous record time of 1:54:41 hrs that he set at the South African National Aquatic Championships in Jeffrey’s Bay earlier this year.
Seidler was the third African to complete the race, behind two South Africans – Chad Ho, 23rd in a time of 1:49.37 hrs ahead of his team mate Danie Marais, 30th in a time of 1:50:14 hrs.
A total of 75 swimmers enter the 23.0 degree water for the 10 km open water swimming event that is an automatic Olympic qualification Tokyo 2020 for the top 10 finishers, it was the fastest race in the last four years, perhaps faster than the Olympic Games in Rio.
For Seidler the race was tough, one of the fastest he ever has done. Phillip felt strong during the whole race, even when the race pace picked up at a very early stage at about 4,5 km. He rated this race one of his best and is very motivated to keep on making Namibia proud in open water swimming.
Phillip is focusing on the 2020 Olympic Trials in Fukuoka which will take part next year June in Japan. He will do his best and hopefully he will qualify for Tokyo 2020. The top 9 finishers will qualify, but only one athlete per nation can qualify through that event.
Then the next-best finisher from each continent will also qualify to ensure continental representation.
Phillip’s aim is to gain more racing experience by competing in more international events and he is looking forward to a future of hard work and constant improvement.
Seidler said “I was happy to compete i the highly competitive 10 km Open Water race which was one of the fastest and most furious races in the past 4 years of open water swimming. Everyone was trying to finish in the top ten for a place at the Olympic Games”.
“I was happy to keep my pace with the world’s bests and finished 32 out of 75 swimmers in my best race ever. I worked and trained hard for this event and I am proud to gain more experience to focus on my next big event. Thanks to everyone for the motivation and good luck messages, your support is highly appreciated”, Seidler said.