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Jennings: No Sign Of A Safety Boat

Oct 28, 2010  - Craig Lord

Christine Jennings, one of three swimmers to have been hospitalised after the 10km race in which Fran Crippen died, has told US morning TV shows that the heat swimmers endured in 31C-plus waters "could have easily played a major role in passing out" and that when she called for help, no-one saw her and "no-one came". 

The waters in which the FINA 10km Marathon Swimming World Cup in Fujairah (UAE) were held last Saturday (and in the heat of midday sun, surface temperatures reported to have been around 40C) were "a lot hotter" than she had experienced in other races, Jennings told CBS's Early Show. 

"I knew the water was hot and every athlete was trying to make the best out of it and do the best they could," she said. "When I became disoriented, I just remember a pain in my head and light headedness and I had to close my eyes for a lot, and I was veering off course," she added. "I couldn't even stay behind the swimmer in front of me." 

Worryingly, Jennings said she that she could not see a lead boat in the race. "I believe someone had told me that there had been a boat leading, but I remember looking up, looking to the side to see where a ref normally would be, normally stays beside to watch the lead pack and see if there is any fighting going on or anything. I looked for one and never saw one," she told CBS.

By the end of the ordeal, Jennings was in such a poor state that she could recall nothing about the end of the race. "I don't really remember actually touching the finish pad," she said. "I just remember someone helping me get to the ambulance and that's basically it." 

Told by coaches that Fran Crippen had died, Jennings said she could not say whether hot water had caused the death of her teammate but added that her experience had led her to believe that "it could have easily played a major role in (her) passing out".

Jennings also appeared on CNN's Morning Show and described conditions in UAE as "a bit extreme.. the air temperature was extremely high and was not something most people are used to. The water was definitely unusually high and I heard several people complaining about it."

Jennings confirmed that she had vomited after her first feed at the end of the first lap and had started to feel ill somewhere between 6 and 8km into the race. "Things started going down hill really fast after 8km," she added.

Her head pounding, she began to veer off course, a situation she described as "scary". Asked what she believed to have caused her sickness, she said: "I think it was just how heat was affecting my body."

Some 500m from the finish line, she could take no more. She rolled over on her back and put a hand in the air. There was a boat some 300m away. "I got to a point where I was starting to get scared and I lifted my hand up for 10 seconds. I was hopeful that someone would see me and come and get me because I wanted to get out of this race. I lay on my back for several minutes and thought 'why is no-one coming'?"

At that point, she believed that she would have to swim to shore because "that was the only way i was getting out of this race".

Asked if anyone was monitoring the race, as far as she was concerned, she said that she had seen a boat 200m or 300m away "but no-one ever came and no-one saw me ... people weren't watching, they were not looking out for me."

At other events organisers, she said, had done a "pretty good job" of providing advice and information on local conditions and what to watch for. "It's not been so good in world cup races but still much better that what happened in Fujairah."

When told of Jennings' experience German distance ace Jan Wolfgarten, who was also in the race in UAE, told reporters at home: "They say in the technical meetings, 'If you have trouble, raise your hand, somebody will be there to assist you.' If she raises her hand and nobody's coming, that is definitely 100 per cent the problem of the organisers."

USA Swimming has instigated an independent inquiry into events in Fujairah, while FINA has today formed a task force for its own investigation into the first death of a swimmer in FINA competition.