Seidler reigns supreme in jetty mile for 10th year

The Pupkewitz Jetty Mile at Swakopmund witnessed a familiar victor as Philip Seidler emerged triumphant for the 10th time on Wednesday.

The open-water swim from Tiger Reef at the Swakop River mouth to the Mole beach is held annually.

This year’s edition drew about 300 swimmers and attracted crowds along the way.

“I told myself this time I’m going to just swim as fast as I can from the beginning . . .

“But mentally, I pushed really hard . . . It’s because of this race that I went into open-water swimming,” Seidler said afterwards.

“I told myself I want to do and die at the end,” he said.

Seidler highlighted the influence of the late business icon Harold Pupkewitz and his contributions to nurturing the swimming community.

He finished about 200m ahead of the first runner-up, Nico Esslinger.

Fresh from his victory at the Teamflippy Open-Water Splash last week at the Mole, Esslinger announced his participation at the open-water world championships in Doha next year.

“I gave it my all, and I am very satisfied. I’m feeling very exhausted right now,” he said.

The women’s race saw a victory from Maja Brinkman (16).

“It’s been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid . . . I’m very happy to be here,” she said.

Brinkman detailed her rigorous training and diverse athletic involvement over the year, culminating in her victory and a bronze medal at an international event in Egypt.