Moesha Johnson, Florian Wellbrock crowned double winners after 5km open water races off Sentosa
SINGAPORE – As fans and family braved the morning sun at Palawan Beach on July 18 to catch the second day of the World Aquatics Championships' (WCH) open water events, there was something a lot more heated going on in the waters off Sentosa.
Australia's Moesha Johnson and Ginevra Taddeucci of Italy were embroiled in a tense and thrilling sprint to the finish line in the women's 5km race.
When it mattered most, it was Johnson who turned on the gas at the final moment to clinch victory in one hour, two minutes and 1.30 seconds, a second ahead of Taddeucci. Japan's Ichika Kajimoto (1:02:28.90) was third.
This was Johnson's second gold medal in three days at the July 11-Aug 3 WCH in Singapore. On July 16, she had won the women's 10km race, over four seconds ahead of Taddeucci, for her maiden individual title in the world meet.
There was a similar crowning of a double-gold medallist in the men's race as German swimmer Florian Wellbrock, who won the 10km crown, clinched the 5km event.
Johnson, 27, who led after the first of three laps, credited Taddeucci for pushing her.
She told The Straits Times: 'At the finish line, I had no idea where she was. I knew she was going to fight, to be honest. I knew she wanted it today, and then I saw a splash beside me, but I just started kicking my legs.
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'I'm not a swimmer who uses my legs, but I know we've practised a lot of different skills towards a finish line, and I know that (move) makes it really hard to pass.
'So you just really draw on everything or anything that comes into your mind, to make sure you get there first.'
The Australian added that she had really wanted to win, having worked hard and sacrificed a lot of time, weekends and social activities in pursuit of excellence in the waters.
'I've been through a lot the last 12 to 18 months,' added Johnson, who won a silver medal in the 10km event at the Paris Olympics. 'At the end, there's not always a lot of skill. When you're tired, it comes down to just pure fight. And I wanted that win. I wanted that back to back (gold) today.'
Up next for Johnson is the 3km knockout sprint – which is making its world championship debut – on July 19, followed by the Australians' title defence in the mixed 4x1,500m relay gold the next day.
Attention will then turn to the pool, where she will compete in both the 1,500m and 800m freestyle events.
Australian swimmer Moesha Johnson competing in the women's 5km open water event at the World Aquatics Championships off Sentosa on July 18, 2025.
ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
The men's race saw a less dramatic finish as Wellbrock touched the finish pad after 57min 26.40sec. Italy's Gregorio Paltreneiri (57:29.30) – silver medallist in the 10km race – finished second behind Wellbrock again, almost three seconds behind the 27-year-old German.
Frenchman Marc-Antoine Olivier, who did not finish the 10km race and had to be assisted back to shore by a lifeguard then, redeemed himself with a third-placed finish in 57:30.40.
Wellbrock said in the mixed-zone post-race that due to the hard conditions two days ago in the 10km event, 'everybody was so tired' and hence the race pace was lower.
But he was equally thrilled with the latest victory.
'It feels so amazing. To be honest, I didn't expect my second gold today, and it was the second gold for Team Germany.... so yeah, it's an amazing feeling to be on the top of the podium again,' said Wellbrock.
The 5km races marked day two of open water races in Singapore.
Following two delays after tests revealed that Escherichia coli bacteria levels in the waters off Sentosa had exceeded World Aquatics thresholds, the events finally kicked off in the afternoon of July 16.
This had resulted in punishing conditions of 30.4 deg C for the water temperature during the men's event and 30.8 deg C for the women's, with several swimmers remarking that it was one of their hardest races.
Conditions were only a little kinder on July 18 with water temperature at 30.3 deg C for the men's event and 30.2 deg C for the women's.
The Singaporean women in the 5km race held their own with Kate Ona (1:09:53.90) finishing 43rd while Muse Goh (1:13:57.40) was 60th. In the men's event, Luke Tan (1:07:26.90) was 68th, while Ian Leong (1:11:53.80) was 74th.
Ona, 17, who competed in the 5km just 36 hours after her world championship debut in the 10km event, felt that conditions in the second race were 'so much better'.
She said: 'I managed to stay in the pack and it allowed me to push harder. Physically, my arms were still sore from the 10km race... but I am really happy with how I executed it.'
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