The 44 athletes who took part in the 10 Kilometers race in the Oceanman Maldives, which took place at K. Maafushi on 10th April and 11th April, experienced a high degree of challenge and difficulty.
Athletes who had taken part in previous Oceanman events faced a high level of challenge in Oceanman Maldives, which was organized by private Maldivian organization "Swim Maldives".
The race was held in the open water, with most athletes who competed being unable to finish the race. Of the 15 who finished the race, one of them was 16 year old athlete Ahmed Manhal Azim. He was the only Maldivian on the list.
Manhal, who undergoes regular swimming training at Maldives Lifeguard Association (MLA), stated that he had not competed in such a difficult and lengthy swimming race prior to that.
"This is the longest race I have taken part in," said Manhal, who competes in domestic tournaments.
"It was a very challenging event. The first five kilometers of the race were easy. But the second half of it was quite challenging."
According to Manhal, he attempted to finish the entire race within four hours. However, he completed the race in 4 hours, 15 minutes and 30 seconds.
"I could not swim at the speed that I wanted because of the jelly fish and cnidarians in the water. The waves were quite strong in the second half of the race as well. That is why I could not achieve my target time," said Manhal, who competed in the 5 Kilometers race as well.
In preparation for Oceanman, Manhal underwent training with MLA coaches and other athletes.
"Training took place in the Hulhumale' Channel (located in between Hulhumale' Phase 1 and Hulhumale' Phase 2) as a focal point in training for the Oceanman," stated Manhal.
Manhal also took part in the men's category of the team events and won the champion title for "The Team". The team also included his younger brothers Mulham Azim and Joodh.
The Maldivian edition of the Oceanman Global, a world famous open-water swimming franchise, the Oceanman Maldives saw 532 swimmers from 40 countries register for the event.
