South Surrey distance swimmer Richard Weinberger finished on the podium at a FINA World Cup race in China in last week – a race that served as more preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Weinberger, who now lives and trains in Vancouver, was second at the 10-km marathon swim in Chun’an, China last week, clocking a time of one hour, 53 minutes and eight seconds – four minutes back of gold-medal winner Allan Do Carmo of Brazil. Ecuador’s Esteban Enderica rounded out the podium of the 28-swimmer field.
“Anytime you can earn a medal at a World Cup is a great thing and it was great to see Richard build on his third-place finish from the Rio test event in August,” said Steve Price, Weinberger’s coach at Swimming Canada, in a news release.
“He is learning to be patient by playing the game better. That served him well in Kazan this summer when he earned a nomination to the Olympic team.”
At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Weinberger won a bronze medal in the 10-km open-water swim.
He now prepares for the final event on the World Cup circuit – a race in Hong Kong on Saturday.
“The field will be tougher and the conditions will be a bit more like Rio. All good stuff for early season preparation,” said Price.
