COACH
SHOULD YOU TRAIN IN OPEN WATER OR IN A POOL?
Image: Isabel Young
There’s a principle that says you should attempt to replicate your race or challenge conditions in training: if you’re planning a longdistance sea swim, then practise swimming in the sea. Prospective English Channel swimmers spend hours doing laps of Dover Harbour, acclimatising to sea temperatures and getting used to swimming in waves and choppy water.
Yet, as we learn in our interview with Hector Pardoe (see page 4), Olympic marathon swimmers, in contrast, do the bulk of their training in the pool.
WHO IS RIGHT?
It’s tempting to side with the elite swimmers because, well, they’re elite. They must be doing something right.
But, as ever, it’s not that simple. Channel swimmers and marathon swimmers are training for different events, with different challenges and features. Crossing the English Channel takes many times longer than an Olympic marathon swim, the water is likely to be colder and no wetsuits are allowed. The rules of Olympic marathon swimming now insist on wetsuits below 18 degrees and won’t allow swims to go ahead in water of less than 16 degrees. The aim in the Olympics isn’t to finish regardless of how long it takes you but to hit the timing pad first. Speed, not staying power or cold water tolerance, is the key requirement.