The Dutch swimmer Sharon van Rouwendaal, who won silver at the 2015 Kazan World Championships and European champion in 2014, won the gold medal in the open water swimming event at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
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The Dutch athlete, who finished the marathon swimming race with a time of 1 hour 56 minutes and 32 seconds and a considerable distance ahead of her competitors, positioned herself among the leaders from the beginning of the race, finished in second place after the first and second laps, and took the lead in the third lap.
The Brazilian Poliana Okimoto won the bronze medal in this event held at the touristy Copacabana Beach. She crossed the finish line in fourth place, but moved up to the podium after the disqualification of the reigning French world champion, Aurelie Muller, who had the second best time.
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Muller was disqualified for obstructing another competitor at the finish line, actually pushing Italian Rachele Bruni, who ended up in second place.
Okimoto, gold medalist at the 2013 Barcelona World Championships, gave Brazil its first medal in this event, which is being held for the third time in the Olympic Games.
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