Strathclyde Loch hosts world's best

SOME of the world's best open water swimmers will go head-to-head in the latest event in the British Gas Great Swim Series in Strathclyde Loch, North Lanarkshire later this month.

Both the men's and women's elite one-mile races will take place on Saturday, 21 August and will give spectators a taste of what to expect at the 2012 Olympics and 2014 Commonwealth Games.

World 5k champion Thomas Lurz, winner of the British Gas Great London Swim earlier this month, will face tough competition from Russia's Daniil Serebrennikov, silver medallist in last year's 10k world championships, as well as local hero Dave Carry, Scotland's double Commonwealth champion over 400m and a competitor in all four British Gas Great Swims in 2009.

Lurz will also face the challenge of Bulgaria's Petar Stoychev, who took a fantastic bronze in the mammoth 25km event at the recent open water World Championships in Canada, along with former world 25k champion, Brendan Capell, and his compatriot Ky Hurst, winner of the British Gas Great East Swim at Alton Water near Ipswich.