The Science and Art of Open Water Swimming

In this episode of The Science and Art of Open Water Swimming, I’m joined by recently retired professional triathlete and coach Kate Bevilaqua to explore the role of swimming in non‑drafting long‑course triathlon.

With the Busselton 100 marking the close of the WA triathlon season, this conversation looks at how athletes should think about the swim not as a standalone effort, but as the first decision of a long race day. Kate reflects on her own career across Ironman, 70.3 and Ultraman, including openly discussing swimming as her relative weakness, and how that shaped her approach to pacing, mindset and race‑day decision‑making.

We discuss what defines a good swim in long‑course racing, common mistakes athletes make early in the swim, warm‑up and start strategies, navigation, equipment choices, transition habits, and how swim preparation influences performance later on the bike and run. Kate also shares insights from her coaching, including how age‑group athletes often underestimate the true cost of the swim.

This is a thoughtful, practical conversation about swimming with intent — not to win the swim, but to set up the rest of the race.

Kate coaches through GK Endurance:
www.gkendurance.com

This interview was recorded on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar. I acknowledge the Noongar people as the Traditional Custodians of these lands and waters and pay my respects to Elders past and present.

In this episode, Grant is joined by Vicki Delves to explore what it really takes to help people feel confident, capable and supported as they begin their journey into open water swimming.

Drawing on her experience coaching beginners and working closely with multisport athletes, Vicki shares how she helps swimmers translate fundamental skills into confidence in real‑world environments. The conversation covers common fears and barriers faced by newcomers, the role of structured progression, and how thoughtful coaching can create safe, welcoming pathways into open water - whether swimmers are there for wellbeing, community, or as part of a broader triathlon journey.

This episode will resonate with swimmers who are new to open water, coaches supporting mixed‑ability groups and anyone interested in how skill development, care, and connection underpin long‑term confidence in the water.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Women’s Academy of Triathlon (Facebook):
https://www.facebook.com/womensacademyoftriathlon/

Perkins Plunge:
https://www.perkinsplunge.org.au/

This interview was recorded on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar. I acknowledge the Noongar people as the Traditional Custodians of this land and pay my respects to Elders past and present.

This episode was originally recorded for Dr Kate Baldwin’s podcast, The Distance Dr: In Practice, and is republished here with permission.

In this conversation, Kate and I unpack one of the most persistent ideas in endurance sport — that lighter is always faster. We explore where this belief comes from, how it has been reinforced through measurement culture and why it is often oversimplified or misapplied in practice.

The discussion spans body composition, adipose tissue physiology, muscle mass, bone health, injury risk and the limitations of common measurement tools. We also challenge the notion of “race weight,” reframing the conversation around performance readiness - the capacity to train consistently, recover well, remain healthy and perform when it matters.

While this conversation is relevant across endurance sport, there are particularly important implications for open water swimming, where buoyancy, insulation, thermoregulation, robustness and fatigue resistance all interact with the aquatic environment. Many of the assumptions carried over from land‑based sports simply don’t translate directly into the water.

This episode will be relevant not only to open water swimmers, but also to triathletes, runners, cyclists, coaches and clinicians who work with endurance athletes and want to take a more contextual, health‑first approach to performance.

You can find more of Kate’s work on her podcast, The Distance Dr: In Practice or via Instagram @thedistancedr

 

And following a helpful nudge to expand beyond Facebook, the podcast can now also be found on Instagram at @scienceandartofows 
 

This interview was recorded across Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar and Wadandi Boodja. I acknowledge the Noongar people, including the Wadandi people of the South West, as the Traditional Custodians of these lands and pay my respects to Elders past and present.

In this episode, Grant speaks with engineer and open‑water swimmer Mariko Collins about how swimmers move in waves, and what those forces feel like in the body. Drawing on her research and her recent first solo Rottnest Channel crossing, Mariko reflects on adaptation, curiosity, and the psychological challenges that emerge when things start to unravel late in a long swim.
 

This interview was recorded on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar. I acknowledge the Noongar people as the Traditional Custodians of this land and pay my respects to Elders past and present

In this episode, I speak with Glenn Taylor, race director of the Lake Argyle Swim, about what it takes to create and safely deliver one of Australia’s most unique open water events. They explore freshwater swimming, reduced buoyancy, big‑lake conditions, risk management, and why Lake Argyle can behave more like an inland sea than a typical lake.
 

For more information on the Lake Argyle Swim visit: www.lakeargyleswim.com

 

And for more events hosted by Glenn in the Kimberly region of Western Australia, check out this site: www.fitevents.com.au 

 

This interview was recorded on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar, with our guest joining from Miriwoong Country in the East Kimberley. I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of these lands and water and pay my respects to Elders past and present