Duel in the Pool begins with Bondi beach battle

“Iconic” was the word of the day. As Australian and American swim stars gathered at Bondi Icebergs to observe the opening event of the three-day Duel in the Pool – an open water relay – adjectives flowed freely. It was an “iconic” event, said one swimming executive, at the “iconic” Bondi beach. “No more appropriate location than Bondi,” offered the state tourism minister, Ben Franklin. “Iconic.”

Sport is prone to hyperbole, but this was probably fair enough. Australia v the United States, the two heavyweight swimming nations, head-to-head. Not at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (that comes this weekend), but at Bondi beach – the spiritual home of Australia’s aquatic culture, the nation’s very own swimming mecca. Not a duel in the pool but a battle from one end of Bondi beach to the other and back, and then out and back again – “four by almost 800 metres,” one event organiser quipped, noting the difficulties of setting up an exact “course” in the middle of the ocean.

Pool swimming is a sport defined by millimetres and milliseconds. It is a sport of certainty and finely-tuned preparations. As the sun rose over Bondi on Friday morning, there was none of that. The American and Australian teams conferred on details while perched on the beach steps, and last-minute questions were met by shrugs. It was apparent that both nations were entering the unknown.

“It’s pretty cool to be racing here at Bondi,” said Australia’s Kareena Lee, an open water bronze medallist at the Tokyo Olympics, as she limbered up on the sand. “A little bit different to what we’re used to!”

Australia’s four swimmers– Lee, Chelsea Gubecka, Kyle Lee and Kai Edwards – are all specialised open water swimmers, albeit more accustomed to racing 10 or 20