Tokyo 2020: Gold in women’s marathon swim for Brazil’s Ana Marcela Cunha

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian marathon swimmer Ana Marcela Cunha, five-time world champion, put the cherry on top of her long and productive career on Wednesday (4) with a gold medal in the 10-kilometer marathon swimming competition at the Tokyo Games.

At the finish lne, only 9/10 of a second separated Cunha and the favorite, defending champion Sharon van Rouwedaal of the Netherlands.

The swimmers cut through the water of Odaiba Marine Park, with clouds sitting low in a blue sky providing welcome shade from the blazing sun.

With barely any wind and little current, the race became a show of endurance and tactics as top medal contenders hung back at the beginning of the competition and gradually gained pace throughout the swim.

A specialist in major challenges – four of her five world titles came in the 25 kilometers competition -she was in front from the start and held off all the swimmers who tried to keep up with her.

Cunha’s previous best Olympic result was fifth place in Beijing in 2008 when she was 16 years old. She did not qualify for London 2012, and at the Rio Games, she placed tenth.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error