German distance freestyle ace Florian Wellbrock delivered a dominant show of Magdeburg Might to become the most decorated Open Water World 10km champion in history after claiming his third gold since 2019 at the global showcase championships this afternoon in Singapore.

Oft said about races of two to 30 lengths in the pool but not so often in a marathon, Wellbrock, who turns 28 next month, set the pace practically from go to gold, his performance reminiscent of that that granted him gold at the Tokyo 2020one Olympics.

Victory for the Fukuoka 2023 World champion broke the tie of two titles with Vladimir Dyatchin, in 2003 and 2007, and Spyridon Gianniotis, of Greece, in 2011 and 2013.

Known as "The Professor" for his technical and tactical edge, Wellbrock, coached at Germany's Magdeburg performance centre by Bernd Berkhahn, extended Germany's lead at the helm of the all-time medals table to 5 golds and 14 medals in total.

Silver for 2022 champion Gregorio Paltrinieri, the Italian veteran of distance freestyle podiums with 2016 Olympic 1500m gold in the pool part of his extraordinary pantheon off successes, took silver after breaking through the field and chasing Wellbrock, married to Tokyo Olympic 1500m free bronze medallist Sarah Koehler, all the way to the end pad off the Palawan Green coast in the bay boasting Sentosa Island.

The battle for bronze was keen: by a whisker, Australian Kyle Lee pipped Wellbrock's Magdeburg training partner and Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist Oliver Klemet to claim the first medal for the Dolphins in the World 10km race back to the start of the event at Fukuoka 2001.

Gregorio Paltrinieri of Italy, silver, Florian Wellbrock of Germany, gold, Kyle Lee of Australia, bronze show the medals after competing in the open water 10km Men Final during the 22nd World Aquatics Championships at Sentosa in Singapore (Singapore), July 16, 2025.CopyrightGiorgio Scala / DBM Deepbluemedia / InsidefotoImage Size4000x2667 / 6.4MB

The top four well clear of the rest of the field after a last lap that set the endurance beasts apart from the rest of the world-class feast. Olympic champion and defending champion Kristof Rasovzsky and his Hungary teammate David Betlehem, Paris 2024 bronze medallist, finished 13th and 9th respectively.

Conditions on Wednesday played a part in the outcome, the pool speed of Wellbrock, Paltrinieri and Klemet significant to the result, Lee breaking through as a fast finisher giving Australia its first medal in the 10km event in 24 years.

Wellbrock came home in 1:59:55.55, just under four seconds ahead of Paltrinieri, 1:59:59.20, Lee on 2:00:10.30, Klemet 0.1sec adrift, which converts to 0.01sec per kilometre shy of the podium pace. Marathon business is tough, start to a fourth or any other finish.

The air was hot and Wellbrock described the swim as like being in a washing machine at 40 degrees (C). The water was not all that hot, of course (30.4C was the official reading, though that probably under-stated the feel when added to the heat overhead).

Even so, such comments are a reminder, perhaps, that swimming governors ought, perhaps to revisit the rules 15 years after Fran Crippen's passing, or at least show us the research that points us to the wisdom of "27C limit for those racing one length of an Olympic pool - but over 30 when it comes to racing 10km under a hot sun in a humid climate.

Wellbrock, meanwhile, said the conditions favoured him, the heat one thing, another relief that the choppiness of a start that set the field's nerves on edge, as the uncertainty that holds hands with turbulence can, turned at least a touch towards very relative calmness compared to what water can bring, the wind even settling a scintilla on the way back to base/the finish end. Said Wellbrock:

"I think the heat always plays into my hands; we know I'm good at it. I was a bit nervous beforehand because it was quite wavy. It felt a bit like being in a washing machine at 40 degrees, so I'm incredibly happy to come out of the water with gold."

His technique helps a lot: long, surfing, pulling, surfing, pulling, the stabilising kick in a fine balance with energy conservation, the length and apparent ease of stroke, his roll a benign rhythm, belying the power in Florian's flow.

Energy management is key, just as it was in the Seine last year when Rasovszky took gold and noted the turbulent practice he'd endured in the Danube to get ready for the Olympic challenge. This day, the heat and less certain wash, no banks to guide the element, the profundity and lay of the bay contributing to a different circumstance, along with the weather. Frenchman Marc-Antoine Olivier struggled, too. Wellbrock got it, saying:

"The water was incredibly choppy today, with lots of waves coming from the left and right. The large tankers and the boats that were sailing along it brought even more waves. It was a bit chaotic out there today."

He's spotted that it would be and made his way to the helm of heat for the first time on the second of a total of six laps. He may have looked back over his shoulder a few times, just in case, but he also gave the impression that any who wanted to catch and pass him might have to strap flippers on. He said:

"On the last lap, I noticed that Olli and Greg were right behind me. And it's so dangerous when the guys behind you are so close, especially Greg, because he's so strong in the finish. So I really tried to push the whole way. When it came to the last buoy and I noticed that there wasn't much resistance from behind anymore, I felt, in quotes, relatively confident. And when it came to the last 100 or 75 meters, I knew: Okay, no one's coming from behind anymore, that's enough today."

Only two swimmers have more world championship titles than Wellbrock, and then not at the showcase event but on those occasions introduced by FINA (now World Aquatics) that lent open water not only a World Aquatics Championship but an Open Water World Championship and an Open Water World Cup.

That's a schedule of annual global targets that pool swimmers (including Wellbrock, Paltrinieri, Klemet and many others in the fray today) got to experience for the first time 2022-2025, courtesy of Covid-catch-up-contractivitis that ends in Singapore, the next global showcase due in 2027, the two-year gap back on.

Wellbrock, counting all the in-between targets, now has a total of six "world championship" titles that fit more comfortably with a count of differing boxing belts than pool honours. Only Thomas Lurz, of Germany, with one World Aquatics Open Water crown to his credit, and Ana Marcela Cunha, of Brazil, have more, each the holder of seven global golds of one kind or another.

Meanwhile, Klemet noted: "I didn't find the heat during the race that intense. I thought it was almost hotter before the race. I was a bit ill during the preparation, so maybe that's why I fell through a bit in the end, but I think that's okay for now. Now it's important to swim out and recover, because the five kilometers and the relay follow."

The Top 14 Finishers:

• RESULTS IN FULL at Omega

Open Water World Championships 10km

All-time Medals

Total medals awarded: 14 Gold, 15 Silver, 15 Bronze (44 total)

Note: Silver and Bronze counts are one higher than Gold because there were 15 championships from 2001-2025

The all-time tables reshuffled

Men's 10km - World Aquatics Champs - All-Time Podiums

The Singapore race confirmed that Berkhahn's Magdeburg Might are in form. The coach was the most successful distance-free mentor at the Paris Olympics, with gold in the men's 400m (now World record holder Lukas Märtens), gold and silver in the women's marathon (Sharon Van Rouwendal, NED, Moesha Johnson, AUS), silver in the men's marathon (Klemet), and bronze in the women's 1500m (Isabel Gose).

Another reminder of the speed mustered by the Magdeburg Might, including another record breaker, Sven Schwartz, so far this year:

Märtens Takes Down Shiny Biedermann & Textile Thorpe With Game-Changing 3:39.96 WR In Stockholm 400 Free

What it took for Lukas Märtens to break Paul Biedermann’s Word record: at 51.90 he matched Mark Spitz’s first 100m free World record in 1970; at 1:47.55, he matched the third of Michael The Albatross Gross’ 200m free World records, from 1984

State Of Swimming +Craig Lord

Magdeburg Might Strikes Again: Wellbrock, Schwarz (Both 14:36) & Klemet (14:39) The First Domestic Sub-14:40 Podium In History

History made in German 1500m national final as coach Bernd Berkhahn’s Magdeburg charges Florian Wellbrock, 14:36.25, Sven Schwarz, 14:36.82, and Oliver Klemet, 14:39.03, deliver the first sub-14:40 domestic podium ever.

State Of Swimming +Craig Lord

Sven Schwarz Sets Euro Record 7:38.12 For German 800 Crown As Berkhahn’s Magdeburg Might Flexes Collective Muscle

No other swim program in the world has ever had four men racing 7:38, 7:39, 7:43 (with a career best 7:39) and 7:44 in one season over 800 free when backed up by two age-record- holding training partners waiting in the wings on 7:51.04 and 7:51.29

State Of Swimming +Craig Lord

The Powerful Pantheons of the Big Beasts Up Against Rasovszky ... below

And, in the women's final...

Johnson Lands Debut 10Km World Title For Self & Australia

In an open-water 10km final of podium firsts, Moesha Johnson landed her debut world title and Australia’s first marathon crown as Italy’s Ginerva Taddeuchi, and Lisa Pou, of Monaco , claimed debut World-Championship podiums, Pou also for self and country

State Of Swimming +Craig Lord