DUBAI, U.A.E., December 1. WHEN Gary Hall, Jr., took the Olympic 50 meter freestyle in Athens last summer, he won in a photo finish by a mere one-hundredth of a second.<\/p>\n
Now imagine swimming 25,000 meters — that's 500 times the distance Gary and his competitors swam — and, at the end, it all comes down, once again, to the touch.<\/p>\n
That's what happened today in Dubai in the final women's event of the 3rd FINA Open Water World Championships. For 24,900 meters, three women swam virtually stroke-for-stroke: Germany's Britta Kamrau, who won by a touch in the 10km. race just yesterday; Holland's legendary Edith Van Dijk who, until today, was having a disappointing championship; and Russia's unheralded Natalia Pankina. A second pack of three hung with the leaders for 20km, then dropped only a few seconds behind, waiting for one of the Big 3to falter so they could strike.<\/p>\n
In the final several hundred meters Pankina gradually drifted behind Kamrau and Van Dijk, who aappeared to be attached at the hip.<\/p>\n
At the end, both women lunged for the finish, with Kamrau nipping her Dutch rival by just one-tenth of a second. After nearly six hours of swimming, the differece between the two fastest women was a mere tenth of a second: 5:43:09.6 to 5:43:09.7. Pankina took the bronze in 5:43:14.4.<\/p>\n
Erica Rose and Briley Bergen took 11th and 12th, respectively, for the USA.<\/p>\n
All 18 swimmers completed the gruellig 15.6-milee swim.<\/p>\n
\n3rd FINA WORLD OPEN WATER SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
\nDubai, United Arab Emirates
\nDecember 1, 2004<\/p>\n
RESULTS <\/p>\n
WOMEN 25K<\/b> <\/p>\n
1. Britta Kamrau (GER) 5:43:09.6<\/p>\n
2. Edith van Dijk (NED) 5:43:09.7<\/p>\n
3. Natalia Pankina (RUS) 5:43:14.4<\/p>\n
4. Stefanie Biller (GER) 5:43:37.3<\/p>\n
5. Olesya Shalygina (RUS) 5:43:41.3<\/p>\n
6. Laura La Piana (ITA) 5:43:43.4<\/p>\n
7. Yvetta Hlavackova (CZE) 5:45:12.9<\/p>\n
8. Floriane Richard (FRA) 5:49:05.0<\/p>\n
9. Karley Stutzel (CAN) 5:49:13.0<\/p>\n
10. Alessandra Romiti (ITA) 5:49:59.2<\/p>\n
11. Erica Rose (USA) 5:53:05.4<\/p>\n
12. Briley Bergen (USA) 5:54:41.2<\/p>\n
13. Nika Kozamernik (SLO) 5:56:15.1<\/p>\n
14. Ivanka Moralieva (BUL) 5:56:46.0<\/p>\n
15. Melissa Benson (AUS) 6:00:02.9<\/p>\n
16. Lauren Guy (AUS) 6:11:04.7<\/p>\n
17. Cindy Persoons (BEL) 6:11:29.6<\/p>\n
18. Esther Nunez Morera (ESP) 6:25:23.1<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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