Jordan Wilimovsky is fifth in marathon swimming after a wild finish
Jordan Wilimovsky swam in the waters off Fort Copacabana for nearly two hours Tuesday, only to miss the medal stand in the men’s marathon by three seconds.
Ferry Weertman of the Netherlands won the competition in a photo finish after out-touching Greece’s Spiros Gianniotis. France’s Marc-Antoine Olivier took bronze.
Wilimovsky, born and raised in Malibu, finished fifth, completing the 10K course in 1 hour, 53 minutes and 3.2 seconds. American teammate Sean Ryan was 14th in the 23-person field.
Wilimovsky, 22, trailed for the first half of the race, falling as far back as 21st. He made a big move before the third lap and was in second with less than one to go.
Entering the final stretch, Weertman said he felt Wilimovsky at his feet and worried about the U.S. swimmer overtaking him. In a NASCAR-like sprint for the finish, where swimmers traditionally bump and grab each other, Wilimovsky was swallowed by the pack and fell to fifth.
“It was a really tough race,” Wilimovsky said. “Unfortunately, I was kind of stuck in the middle.”
The race was so close, at the end, Weertman wasn’t even sure he had won. The official results show he and Gianniotis both hit the electronic touch pad at 1:52:59.8, leaving a photo to determine the gold medalist.
Weertman didn’t know he won until he was in a golf cart en route to media interviews and a friend from home called him with the news.
“I think my friend saw on the television that I had my phone, so he called me and I picked up. And he was like, ‘You won! You won!’ I still can’t believe it,” Weertman said.
In the months leading up to the Games, Rio’s water quality dominated headlines, with many questioning the wisdom of holding events in waters often rife with bacteria and untreated sewage. An Associated Press report this year suggested ingesting as little as three teaspoons of water from Guanabara Bay — where the sailing events are taking place — could cause serious stomach and respiratory illnesses.
The marathon was held in the Atlantic Ocean off Copacabana Beach, where the international swimming federation has regularly tested the water and deemed it safe. U.S. swimmers, however, have been taking antibiotics and probiotics during the Games in an attempt to ward off any ill effects from the ocean.
Wilimovsky and Ryan praised the water after the competition and said they felt fine after training there earlier in the week.
“I didn’t notice anything wrong or anything bad. It was really nice,” Wilimovsky said. “It was just fun to be out there.”
Wilimovsky also competed in the 1,500-meter indoor race in Rio, where he finished fourth. The reigning world marathon champion, Wilimovsky is the first American to compete in both the indoor and outdoor swimming events at the Olympics.
Twitter @stacystclair
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