The open water swimming team event at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships was held on 30 July 2015 in the Kazanka River, Kazan, Russia.
Germany won gold with a time of 55:14.4, and Brazil and the Netherlands tying for silver with a time of 55:31.2.
Event description Each country was represented by three swimmers who swam as a team. Each team swam the same 5-kilometer course, with each member of the team starting at the same time. The time it took the last member of the team to complete the course determined the team's time, which determined the finishing positions as in a time trial. A staggered start was implemented, meaning each team was set off individually thirty seconds after the previous team.
Qualification Each FINA member federation could enter one team into the event. That team had to consist entirely of swimmers who were also entered into individual events at the Championships. Teams were also required to contain at least one man and one woman.
Results The race started at 12:00 MSK on 30 July. It took place in the Kazanka River, Kazan, Russia.
Swimmers swam close to their teammates to take advantage of drafting effects. Germany won gold, defending their title with a time of 55:14.4. There was an issue with Brazil's timing chip, meaning the officials convened for ten minutes after the race to calculate their time. Brazil and the Netherlands tied for second, both swimming a time of 55:31.2.
Germans Isabelle Härle and Christian Reichert were also part of the team that won the event in 2013, meaning they won a gold medal in this event in two consecutive championships.
The World Open Water Swimming Association called the closeness of the race "remarkable", as Brazilians Allan do Carmo and Ana Marcela Cunha, and the Netherlands' Ferry Weertman and Sharon van Rouwendaal all swam exactly the same time of 55:31.2. Due to the tie, it was the first event of this championships where no bronze medal was awarded.
+ Results Rank Nation Swimmers Time Isabelle HärleRob MuffelsChristian Reichert 55:14.4 Ana Marcela CunhaAllan do CarmoDiogo Villarinho 55:31.2 Marcel SchoutenSharon van RouwendaalFerry Weertman 55:31.2 4 Rachele BruniSimone ErcoliFederico Vanelli 55:49.4 5 Sean RyanAshley TwichellJordan Wilimovsky 55:50.6 6 Melissa GormanSimon HuitengaJarrod Poort 56:07.4 7 Gergely GyurtaÉva RisztovDániel Székelyi 56:08.4 8 Kalliopi AraouzouAntonios FokaidisSpyridon Gianniotis 56:18.6 9 Samantha ArévaloEsteban EndericaIvan Enderica Ochoa 56:45.9 10 Sergey BolshakovAnastasiia KrapivinaDaniil Serebrennikov 56:47.0 11 David AubryAurélie MullerMarc-Antoine Olivier 56:50.9 12 Antonio ArroyoHéctor RuizErika Villaécija 57:16.0 13 Guillermo BertolaCecilia BiagioliGabriel Villagoiz 57:27.8 14 Qiao ZhongyiYan SiyuZu Lijun 57:53.9 15 Angélica AndréVasco GasparRafael Gil 58:12.6 16 Wilder CarreñoErwin MaldonadoPaola Pérez 58:39.3 17 Alena BenešováMatěj KozubekJán Kútnik 59:43.1 18 Chad HoNico ManoussakisMichelle Weber 1:00:31.2 19 Zaira CardenasDaniel DelgadilloArturo Pérez Vertti 1:01:36.6 20 Kenessary KenenbayevVitaliy KhudyakovXeniya Romanchuk 1:02:12.7 21 Youssef HossameldeenReem KaseemAdel Ragab 1:02:13.1 22 Kwan Ho YinKwok Cho YiuTse Tsz Fung 1:05:43.8
References
Further information
– Interview with Rob Muffels, part of the German winning team – Some quotes from the competitors after the race – Further quotes from competitors