Moesha Johnson has made history by winning Australia's first 10km open-water swimming world title at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. The 27-year-old, who claimed silver in the same event at the Paris Olympics, finished in two hours, seven minutes, and 51.30 seconds, beating Italy's Ginevra Taddeucci by 4.40 seconds. Monaco's Lisa Pou took bronze.
Compatriot Kyle Lee also contributed to Australia's medal tally, securing bronze in the men's 10km race. German Florian Wellbrock won his sixth open-water world championship in one hour, 59 minutes, and 55.50 seconds, with Italy's Gregorio Paltrinieri taking silver. Lee finished 14.80 seconds behind Wellbrock, edging out Germany's Oliver Klemet by just 0.1 second for his first individual world championships medal.
Both 10km events were postponed multiple times due to water quality concerns at Palawan Beach on Sentosa Island. Organisers deemed water samples collected on Tuesday afternoon showed a 'significant improvement', allowing the races to proceed on Wednesday. The water temperature was 30°C, with conditions described on social media as 'human soup'.
Johnson described the race as 'definitely harder than Paris', citing the heat, 36-hour delay, and strong currents. She praised her team, noting that Australia had two women and two men in the top 10. Fellow Australian Chelsea Gubecka finished ninth in the women's race, while Nicholas Sloman placed eighth in the men's event. Johnson, Lee, Gubecka, and Sloman are the reigning world mixed team champions.
Johnson, who will also compete in the 800m and 1500m freestyle in the pool at the championships, said she has embraced every opportunity since the Olympics, racing with 'nothing left to prove'. She credited her family and faith for helping her through back-to-back illnesses.
