Excellence on display at Open Water Swimming World Cup Leg 3 as Europeans lead charge

Europe’s open water swimmers held their course with poise and power as the World Aquatics Open Water Swimming World Cup touched down in Setubal, Portugal for its third leg of the 2025 season on 14 & 15 June, with both men’s races going to swimmers from the continent.

France’s Marc-Antoine Olivier, one of the most seasoned swimmers in the men’s field, turned the tide of the Men’s 10km race with a masterclass of tempo control and finishing strength. The 28-year-old held firm as the pace quickened over the final kilometre, outlasting teammate Sacha Velly to take victory in 1:53:28.10, in what was a visibly emotional 1-2 finish for the French pairing. Germany’s Oliver Klemet secured third in a close finish that saw the top ten separated by barely twelve seconds.

The result adds to Olivier’s bronze medal in the 10km event from the 2025 European Aquatics Open Water Swimming Championships in Stari Grad last month, and continues the firm hold Europeans have on men’s open water swimming – with all of the top ten places taken up by athletes from the continent.

Hungary’s David Betlehem has been in good form in recent months, and was looking for an individual victory. As it turned out, he found it not in the 10km, but in the explosive 3km knockout final. Timing his sprint with cold precision, Betlehem surged ahead in the final metres and held onto the lead as they came into the funnel to clinch gold in 6:12.00, edging out the two French athletes from the 10km in a race that could’ve gone another way had there been a change in dynamic, as is always the case in this discipline.

On the women’s side, it was Ginevra Taddeucci of Italy who delivered Europe’s standout performance in the 10km. The 28-year-old swam a controlled, confident race in what seemed to be a race of tactics. Although beaten by Australia’s Moesha Johnson, her swim was good enough for the silver medal – adding to the trio of medals she took from Stari Grad. France’s Caroline Jouisse, a veteran who has come into her own in recent years and is a 25km European champion, followed closely for bronze, while Hungary’s Viktoria Mihalyvari-Farkas and Germany’s Lea Boy rounded out a fiercely contested top five.

The level of competition has never been tighter – and it showed. Just 18 seconds separated the top ten women, and nine of them flew European flags. Spain’s Angela Martinez Guillen, Germany’s Celine Rieder, Italy’s Barbara Pozzobon and Hungary’s Bettina Fabian were all right in the mix, underlining the continent’s continued dominance in depth.

In the women’s 3km knockout sprint, Jouisse brought the fire once more, battling her way to silver in a thrilling dash to the finish behind Japan’s Ichika Kajimoto. Germany’s Lea Boy added bronze to her weekend haul, and Monaco’s Lisa Pou and Britain’s Ella Dyson secured spots in the final with poised, pacey swims that confirmed their rising status in the European ranks.

With three World Cup stops now complete, the open water swimming attention remains in Setubal for the European Junior Open Water Swimming Championships, which taken place from 19– 21 June.

Stephen Stanley for European Aquatics

The post Excellence on display at Open Water Swimming World Cup Leg 3 as Europeans lead charge first appeared on European Aquatics®.