Two-time Olympic open water swimming champion Sharon van Rouwendaal has confirmed her participation in this year’s aQuellé Midmar Mile which is set to take place at the famous KwaZulu-Natal dam from 6-9 February 2025.
Just five months ago the Dutch swimmer stood atop the Olympic podium for a second time, following up her gold medal in the 10km marathon swim at Rio 2016 and silver at Tokyo 2020 with another gold in Paris last August.
Now she’s headed to South Africa, not only to once again compete in the world’s largest open water swimming event, which she won in 2023, but also to share her knowledge and experience in a series of six coaching clinics across the country.
Apart from her Olympic heroics, the Dutch star has also claimed three open water world titles, including doubling up with gold medals in both the 5km and 10km events at last year’s World Championships in Doha.
Van Rouwendaal’s coaching clinics will take place in Johannesburg, Cape Town and at Midmar Dam itself between 24 January and 8 February.
MEMORABLE
The 31-year-old said her incredible experiences at the 2023 aQuellé Midmar Mile were what convinced her to return.
“I did the Midmar and I saw what a huge event it was so it made me say: ‘OK, I'm definitely coming back, this is definitely something I want to participate in again and be part of again,” she explained.
“The experience was really special, also because when you run out [at the finish] the vibes were incredible, everybody's cheering you on.
“I think it feels like a family event… somehow everybody wants to participate and that's why it's such a big event because it feels like coming together.”
Van Rouwendaal added that while she hopes that having the chance to swim with a two-time Olympic champion might motivate others to participate, she herself was inspired by swimmers she met at Midmar Dam two years ago, including double amputee Chad Gifford who has participated in the event over 10 times.
“Those are the people you will always remember talking to,” she said. “That he's so positive, he did the Midmar, so I hope to see people like that again… It had a big impact on me that this man was so positive and wanted to swim.”
Van Rouwendaal is also relishing the prospect of sharing her expertise with the swimmers who will attend her coaching clinics.
“Lately there are a lot of people who want to improve in open water and they ask me about stroke correction, so I try and improve their technique.
“In open water it's very important to do good buoy turns, and how you do your sighting, where do you look, how do you lift your head up, when do you lift your head up, and then there's a big part of drafting… so that's the stuff I teach.”
Meanwhile, after minimal training since the Paris Olympics, Van Rouwendaal believes she’s unlikely to record another victory in the elite women’s race, but with the aQuellé Midmar Mile spanning just 1.6km rather than the 10km she completed in the French capital, she’s sure to remain a massive threat come 9 February.