Top Middle Distance Swimmer Cai Lin Down For The Open Water Event As Well In Jakarta

PETALING JAYA: It will be a bold plunge into untreaded territory when four Malaysian swimmers compete in open water swimming at the Indonesia SEA Games in November.

The Olympic Council of Malaysia have given the nod to two men and two women swimmers to enter the open water swimming disciplines, which be contested for the first time in SEA Games history.

Double duty: SEA Games 400m and 800m freestyle defending champion Khoo Cai Lin will be swimming in the open water event at the Jakarta Games in November.

The two male swimmers are Kevin Yeap, the Laos SEA Games silver medallist in 1500m freestyle and 16-year-old schoolboy Vernon Lee while the female representatives are SEA Games gold medallist Khoo Cai Lin and Perth-based Heidi Gan.

Kevin and Cai Lin are currently the country’s top middle and long distance swimmers while 22-year-old Heidi is also an active swimmer who has swam for the country at the SEA Games previously.

Four gold medals are at stake in the 5km and 10km races for men and women respectively.

The open water swimming events will be conducted in the pristine waters of beautiful Putri Island, 70km off the coast from Jakarta.

The 10km event is an Olympic discipline and made its debut in Beijing three years ago while the 5km and 25km races are also contested at the World Championships.

And Laos SEA Games 400m and 800m freestyle gold medallist Cai Lin is relishing the challenge heading into uncharted waters in what is the equivalent of marathon running.

Unlike pool swimming, athletes competing in open water might have to contend with elements such as currents, jellyfish, weather and the chaos of a mass start.

Organisers also need to put in a detailed evacuation safety plan in place as required by FINA, the governing body for aquatics, following the death of a swimmer in an international event late last year.

“I am quite excited going for a new event this time. I’m not just swimming the middle and long distance races at the SEA Games but I’m doing the 5km open water event,” said the 22-year-old Cai Lin, who is never shy from taking on a new challenge.

She has previously participated in open sea swimming before and even won the Kapas-Marang International Swimathon in Terengganu a few years back.

“I was doing it for fun previously but it’s more serious now.

“The distance is not a problem as I’m used to it.

“I swim a distance of 7km in the pool daily when I’m training towards a major competition but the external elements makes things tougher in open water.

“All of us have never swam there and we don’t know what to expect, so we just see how things go when we get there,” said Cai Lin, who will compete in swimming events at Palembang from Nov 12-16 before heading to Jakarta for the open water events on Nov 17-19.