Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Are you ready to put your endurance to the test?
Tri3bn will be organising Brunei’s first ever international open water swimming marathon - Brunei Marathon Swim - next month.
Sanctioned by the Brunei Amateur Swimming Association (BASA), the competition is scheduled to be held on Oct 21 at the Berakas Forest Reserve.
It is open to all regardless of nationality or country of residence. The events that will be contested for both men and women are 10km, 5km, 2.5km and 1.5km.
The competition is held to give people an opportunity to explore open water swimming as well as to bring up the sport in search of national athletes.
Considering that this is the first time that such an event will be held, questions of safety have been raised and Faizal Hj Ahmad (pic), co-founder of Tri3bn, assures those interested that safety is their No 1 priority.
“Safety is the No 1 priority for open water swimming. Before we start we will brief and highlight the safety part to everyone,” said Faizal in an interview with BruSports News yesterday.
“We have a lot of parties involved such as having kayaks, divers, jetskis, boats, marine police and navy.
“We have different categories so participants will be required to wear different coloured swimming caps,” he added.
“There will always be one marshal observing two swimmers at a time,” continued Faizal.
The 41-year-old, who is a former national marathoner, swimmer and cyclist, also highlighted the differences between swimming in a pool compared to that in the open seas.
“In the swimming pool, the water is clear and people can see what is around them such as the line and all,” said Faizal, who helps train people to become triathletes at Tri3bn.
“In open water, there is no line nor barrier. There is only you to master the swim.
“You have to lift up your head and look in front. There is also a need to correct the stroke and body posture.
“People kick every time they are in the pool but in open water you have to understand the muscles you use have to be relaxed,” he added.
Having plenty of experience under his belt, Faizal also offered some advice to those looking to take their first plunge in open water swimming.
“They should know about techniques on how to swim in open water, understand the environment and current behaviour,” said Faizal.
“For me I have done a lot of it before. It takes times because sometimes I don’t feel very confident.
“But most important In my mind is that I tell myself should anything happen I will not to panic. Normally I start slow and eventually gain momentum,” he concluded.
Cut off times are set at 5h (10km), 2h 30mins (5km), 2h 30mins (2.5km) and 1h 30mins (1.5km). The fastest times in the respective categories will be taken as the new national records.
Interested parties can log on to www.bruactiv.com/bms2018 to register before the closing date on October 1.
