Moscow Open Water Swimming Championship a rehearsal for World Cup

While the temperatures in the Russian capital have been reaching 30 degrees, open water swimmers have gathered in the Moscow region, to participate in an annual competition.

The Moscow Open Water Swimming Championship was held in a perfect location, with beautiful scenery, just outside the Russian capital.

Lots of young and ambitious swimmers took part in this tournament, and it was a good chance for them to try and get into the national team.

However, the standard of the event is improving as, alongside the amateurs, professional swimmers are now taking part as it is a stage of the Russian championship.

“We are hosting the open water swimming championship for the fifth time. We are very pleased that every year the number of participants is increasing. And we had several World and European champions competing tonight… However we are planning to hold a very important competition – a stage of the World Cup – so today's championship is a kind of rehearsal,” Stanislav Lyovochkon, organizer, said.

The biggest star of the event was Ekaterina Seliverstova, European champion in 2006, who has just won the Russian championship.

So it was no surprise that she was the quickest to the finish line over a distance of five kilometers, beating her compatriot Anna Uvarova.

“Every year I come here to take part in the competition – I like this event very much. For me, it was more a sort of training session, and I was confident that I'd win. This victory will inspire me for the forthcoming World Championships,” Ekaterina Seliverstova said.

Meanwhile, the most entertaining section of the championship was an open relay race, in which all swimmers who wanted to could take part – purely for fun.

The organizers are confident that the tournament will keep on progressing and, before long, foreign World Cup swimmers will be competing in the waters of the Moscow Region.