The Riviera Nayarit welcomes the 9th Open Water Safe Swim 5-3K
- The open water competition will take place next Saturday, April 6, 2019 at Marina Riviera Nayarit beach in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle.
The adventure begins on April 6th when 800 domestic and foreign swimmers plunge into the 2019 Riviera Nayarit Open Water Safe Swim Tournament at 8 a.m. from the Marina Riviera Nayarit in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle.
The event was presented to local media via a press conference held on Thursday, March 28th, by event director and organizer Belín Villasante, who announced this is part of the largest Open Water series competitions in the world (Global Swim Series, or GSS) and is backed by the Swimming Association of the State of Nayarit.
Villasante commented this long distance competition encompasses a circuit of 1,250 meters within the Bay of Banderas that includes children, youth, and master categories as well as professional and special needs.
The organizer also added they are expecting 800 swimmers (the limit) mostly from the Mexican states of Nayarit, Colima, Jalisco, Estado de Mexico, Zacatecas, the Federal District, and Guanajuato, although this year there was a 10% increase in participants from the United States and Canada, as well as some from Argentina and Hawaii.
“We’ve improved every year; the event is growing and becoming more international thanks to the efforts of the entire team,” she said. “It’s also due in large part to the international positioning of the Riviera Nayarit, its connectivity, infrastructure, and other values that make this competition one of the most important in the nation.”
Silvia Duarte, manager of the Groups and Events office of the Riviera Nayarit Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) was also present at the event, along with Claudia Guzmán, director of Economic Development for the Bahía de Banderas City Council. Both agreed this type of events position the Riviera Nayarit as an ideal destination for sports tourism.
Duarte stressed that many of the competitors are minors and usually travel accompanied by their families, trainers, and friends, which translates into an important economic spillover for the region, not to mention the increase in hotel occupancy that occurs with the arrival of these groups.
Competition details
- The inauguration and flag ceremony begin at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 6th. All swimmers in all categories start competing at 7:50 a.m.
- The circuit for swimmers 10 years and under will be a 500-meter rectangle; swimmers 11 years and older will swim a 1.25k rectangle. There will be two classifications for the 13-and-older categories, as competitors can choose to swim the shorter 1.25k event or the longer 3.75k one. The men’s and women’s Open and Professional categories circuit runs for 5k.
- Timing will be electronic via a chip affixed to each swimmer.
- The event will be safeguarded by the Navy, the Bahía de Banderas and the State Civil Defense Units, and the Government of the State of Nayarit. There will also be a private recovery section with medical personnel, hydration, and solid food.
- The organizers invite the entire community of Bahía de Banderas to assist as spectators to support the swimmers.
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Riviera Nayarit reaffirms its status as an ideal destination for sports tourism thanks to the many world-class events that take place here with the support of the Government of the State of Nayarit via the Tourism Promotion Trust (Fiprotur).
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