Episode 9: Steven Munatones, Part 1: Promoting Marathon Swimming and the Olympic Push

Steven Munatones has been a force in the sport of Open Water Swimming for nearly 50 years, as a competitive racer, a pioneering solo swimmer, and creator of Oceans Seven, WOWSA, the Daily News of Open Water Swimming, and Openwaterpedia. In Part 1 of our interview with Steven, we discuss the origins and throughline of his Daily News of OWS and Openwaterpedia projects: the push to include Open Water Swimming in the Olympic Games. These projects were the first attempts to systematically compile information about the emerging sport of Open Water Swimming on the internet. We also discuss the consequences of this Olympic push for solo marathon swimming, especially the longer historical races that have been abandoned by FINA / World Aquatics. Music credit: 'Wanderlust' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au