Poor sea conditions forced the organisers to change the route, obliging the 607 participants to start their swim from the pier slipway and ending the crossing on Caleta de Sebo beach, where the finishing line was located.
Federico Bini and Rebeca Santos win La Travesía a Nado El Rio 2018
Federico Bini, junior and current champion of the Copa Cabildo de Aguas Abiertas de Lanzarote (The Lanzarote Cabildo Open Water Cup), and the world Masters champion in the 800 and 3,000 metres distances, as well as European Masters champion in 3 and 5 kilometres, Rebeca Santos, won the XXVI Travesía a Nado el Río, in a year marked by a change in route due to poor sea conditions.
Of the 607 participants who set off from the slipway of the Caleta de Sebo quay, there were only five drop-outs, during a route that went from the pier to buoy number seven, where after completing 1,200 meters, participants turned and swam back to Caleta de Sebo beach to complete the 2,600 metres of the race.
The men’s final was very exciting, with a closely swum finish. It was won by Federico Bini with a time of 35 minutes and 59 seconds, two seconds ahead of Javier Betancort and three seconds before Oscar Martin, providing a very interesting finishing line. In the women’s category Rebeca Santos was the winner, with a total time of 37 minutes and 44 seconds, while the current champion of the Copa Cabildo de Aguas Abiertas de Lanzarote, Sara González, took 40 minutes and six seconds to finish, completing the race in second place. Mar Peña took third place with 42 minutes and 29 seconds.
Among the participants, the presence of the Lanzarote Paralympian, Lionel Morales stood out. He won in the adapted S7 category, while Dani Müller won in the S6 category and José Afonso did the same in the S9 category.
