2024 World Aquatics Open Water Swimming Junior Championships
- September 6-8, 2024
- Alghero, Italy
- Open Water
- Meet Central
USA Swimming announced a roster of 12 swimmers to wear the Stars and Stripes at the 2024 Open Water World Junior Championships on Wednesday, with the event scheduled for September in Italy.
Highlighting the roster is Claire Weinstein, the 2022 World Junior champion in the girls’ 5km who is set to race the 7.5km at this year’s edition.
Weinstein, who is favored to qualify for her first Olympic team at next month’s U.S. Trials in the pool, will be joined by three of her Sandpipers of Nevada teammates in Alghero, as Sianna Savarda will race the girls’ 10km event and Gabriel Manteufel (7.5km) and Luke Ellis (10km) will compete on the boys’ side.
Saint Petersburg Aquatics also landed two swimmers on the roster in Cobe Hehenberger (boys’ 5km) and Brinkleigh Hansen (girls’ 5km).
The roster will feature nine first-timers representing the U.S., as Weinstein, Ellis and NOVA of Virginia’s Claire Stuhlmacher are the only three members who have previously.
The World Junior Open Water Swimming Championships offer the following events for each age group:
- 14-15 – 5km
- 16-17 – 7.5km
- 18-19 – 10km
FULL U.S. ROSTER
Girls
- Daisy Collins (North Carolina Aquatic Club) – 7.5km
- Brinkleigh Hansen (Saint Petersburg Aquatics) – 5km
- Sianna Savarda (Sandpipers of Nevada) – 10km
- Alex Siegel (Long Island Aquatic Club) – 5km
- Claire Stuhlmacher (NOVA of Virginia Aquatics) – 10km
- Claire Weinstein (Sandpipers of Nevada) – 7.5km
Boys
- Luke Ellis (Sandpipers of Nevada) – 10km
- Ryan Erisman (Laker Swim) – 10km
- Cobe Hehenberger (Saint Petersburg Aquatics) – 5km
- Colin Jacobs (Sarasota Sharks) – 7.5km
- Nicholas Liberty (Rockville Montgomery Swim Club) – 5km
- Gabriel Manteufel (Sandpipers of Nevada) – 7.5km
“This will be a great opportunity for these young athletes to represent the U.S. and gain valuable racing experience on the international stage,” said USA Swimming National Team Open Water Director, Bryce Elser.
“These athletes had stellar showings at Open Water National Championships earlier this month, and they’ll be great representatives of both their club and USA Swimming during their time in Italy.”
The 2024 World Aquatics Open Water Junior Championships will run from September 6-8 in Alghero, Italy.
Kind of a bummer the distances are dictated by age. A 5k and a 10k are much different races and a swimmer could be well suited for one and not the other.
I personally think these distances are age appropriate and at the upper end of capacity for the greater majority within each age group. I do understand that it is possible for younger kids to swim longer but to ask them to do it at race pace under elite international racing conditions would be asking for trouble medically, some would go beyond their capacity and things can happen very quickly in an Openwater medical situation.
If you are talking about the older kids swimming a 5km instead of 10km then yes I agree.
They are all between 15-17 correct? The distance has nothing to do with health or safety. This isn’t even a super long workout for any of them.
14-17
If they swim it like a workout then yes they can handle this distance, but if you race it at your limit (which is what is required to be competitive internationally) then it is easy to misjudge your own potential when inexperienced and add the Openwater element where it may be a minute (or longer) for safety craft to support you medically and the potential for tragic outcomes multiplies very quickly. It takes a lot of experience to get these marathon races right as an athlete. This is a swimming marathon but it’s not like a running marathon where you can just collapse on the ground and medics or anyone standing trackside can rush to help.
Free her let my girl taper for that 200
Weinstein will not need to taper for World Junior Openwater to win the 7.5km anyway. No doubt she will focus tapers for trials and Paris, Italy will just be a bit of fun after in my opinion.
hope she goes 154 at trials
I hope Claire Weinstein holds her taper this year.
But the 200free field is too competitive what if she doesn’t make it at trials