Thirty-One Swimmers to Compete in 50th Annual Atlantic City Marathon -- July 22, 2003

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ, July 22. TWENTY-FIVE top individual distance swimmers from around the world will compete on Saturday, August 9, 2003 in one of the premier annual international marathon events--the 50th annual Atlantic City Around-the-Island Marathon Swim.

Six amateur swimmers will also compete in this golden celebration of New Jersey’s only marathon swim. It is the seventh of twelve races in the FINA Marathon World Cup, and the only FINA-sanctioned event in the United States.

Thirteen countries will be represented including Argentina, Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, India, Japan, Macedonia, Mexico, Netherlands, Russia, Slovenia, Spain and the United States.

Five U.S. states will be presented including Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington.

The Argentineans will field the largest contingent with five swimmers. The race features 16 male and 15 female swimmers.

Defending champions in the men’s, women’s and amateur’s divisions lead the pack. Men’s winner Igor Majcen, Slovenia, finished in 7:18:24, and women’s winner, Shelley Clark, Australia, completed the course in 8:12:47. Amateur champion Cara Manlandro, Wildwood, New Jersey, USA, finished in 9:52:22.

The 22.5-mile marathon will begin at 9:00 a.m. at historic Gardner’s Basin. The swimmers leave the inlet into the ocean and move south down the island. After three to four hours, the swimmers turn and follow the course from the point in Longport and head through the back bays of Longport, Margate, Ventnor and Atlantic City before returning to the finish line back at historic Gardner’s Basin. Each swimmer will be accompanied by an escort boat during the race.

Depending on weather and water conditions, swimmers should finish approximately seven to nine hours after the race begins. Atlantic City Mayor Lorenzo Langford will be the official starter for the city’s golden event.

The Atlantic City Around-the-Island Marathon Swim is sponsored by the City of Atlantic City and USA Swimming.

More information about ACMS, including history, past results, media coverage and this year's event, can be found at http://www.acswim.org