According to current national triathlon champion Lam Quang Nhat, ocean swimming is always unpredictable, athletes need to practice at least three times in the ocean before entering the race.
At the Aquaman Vietnam 2022 tournament held last October in Tra Co (Quang Ninh), athlete Tran Minh Tuan (Hanoi) failed to complete the half aqua swim (1km swim, 10km run). Minh Tuan said that the competition day was his first time swimming in the ocean. The big waves and crowded athletes overwhelmed him, leading to a DNF (did not finish the race). "Ocean swimming is more difficult than I imagined," Tuan said.
Not only Tuan, at Aquaman Vietnam last year, out of more than 1,000 athletes participating in the competition, there were nearly 100 DNFs, most of whom were first-time ocean swimmers, had no experience, leading to too much cut off time or giving up in this competition.
Lam Quang Nhat competes at sea in a triathlon. Photo: Lam Quang Nhat
According to reigning national triathlon champion Lam Quang Nhat, the sea is always unpredictable, there is no formula like in the lake. "The sea has waves, currents, wind and especially many people competing. The only solution is that athletes must practice in the sea a lot, at least three times before. Don't let the competition day be the first time swimming in the sea. Only by practicing enough and correctly can you protect yourself," Nhat said.
At the DNSE Aquaman Vietnam 2023 tournament taking place in Phan Thiet on October 29, the Organizing Committee will arrange a trial swim for athletes one day before the competition. Lam Quang Nhat will accompany 1,500 athletes in this session. In addition, athletes can also proactively practice more to get used to the water temperature, waves and wind closer to the competition day.
The trial swim helps athletes assess the current, wave level, and wind direction, thereby coming up with a strategy that suits their strength. According to the triathlon champion, everything can change on the day of the race, but being prepared helps athletes not to be overwhelmed.
Lam Quang Nhat also noted that during training in the pool or sea, athletes need to practice their sighting technique. Sighting helps swimmers stay on track. Poor sighting causes athletes to swim a longer distance than expected, affecting their performance and fitness.
Depending on the level, the athlete has different ways of sighting. At the easiest level, the athlete can swim freestyle, when needing to see the line, switch to two breaststroke strokes, keep the head above the water, then memorize the line and continue swimming freestyle according to imagination. For good freestyle swimmers, keep this swimming style until needing to orient. But instead of turning the head sideways to breathe, the athlete lifts the head, looks up and forward.
"Sighting is even more important when competing in big wave conditions. Each person has to look at the buoy more, know when the wave is coming, watch the wave crest, and look in the direction. If you try to sight between two waves, it will be very difficult to see, making the athlete both physically and mentally tired," Nhat said.
Athletes can practice sighting while swimming in the pool. Photo: Lam Quang Nhat
In addition, Nhat advises athletes not to focus on swimming too fast. According to him, compared to 21km running, 2km swimming is just a warm-up exercise. "Swimming fast is only a few minutes faster than others, but running fast can be more than ten minutes. Spending too much energy on the underwater part will affect your physical strength when entering the running part," Nhat said.
However, athletes should not run as soon as they come out of the water. From his experience, Lam Quang Nhat has found that the time to reach the transition area is the golden time to breathe and regain strength. "Athletes should not run fast right away. Being rushed will increase the heart rate and make it easier to lose strength," he advised.
DNSE Aquaman Vietnam 2023 takes place on October 29 in Phan Thiet city. Lam Quang Nhat had the opportunity to train here. He said that the weather in Phan Thiet is quite sunny and hot. Therefore, athletes need to hydrate adequately, and prepare more salt and gel. "The body needs time to absorb energy. Athletes should not wait until the body is about to be exhausted to replenish, this is absolutely not good for health," Lam Quang Nhat noted.
Aquathlon is a fairly new competition for most Vietnamese athletes. The swimming competition in the sea will be more difficult than in a still lake. Each person needs to be fully equipped with knowledge to save energy and respond if an incident occurs. "Ocean swimming is not easy, so Nhat really hopes that the amateur community will have a serious view of training so that the playground is meaningful and complete," Nhat said.
Lam Quang Nhat shares swimming experience. Photo: Lam Quang Nhat
DNSE Aquaman Vietnam 2023 takes place on October 29, at NovaWorld Phan Thiet. The tournament has four events. Aquakid for children aged 6 to 10 (swim 200m and run 1km). Sprint Aqua (swim 500m, run 5km). Half Aqua (swim 1km, run 10km). Currently, the Aquaman Vietnam registration portal is open for all distances.
Readers who want to compete in the first aquathlon in Vietnam, register here.
Thanh Lan
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