Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon 10 kilometre require different tactics and showcase several different racing strategies that are more common to competitive cycling, marathon running and water polo than traditional pool swimming. It is one of the few Olympic sports where the athlete's coaches play a critical role during the actual event. The coaches have four opportunities to provide drinks to their athletes as the athletes swim by floating pontoons in the course. If the coach falls in the water, his or her athlete is immediately disqualified. Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon 10 kilometre The men's marathon 10 kilometre event at the 2008
Marathon swimming comparing finish times from performances undertaken on different days meaningless. One of the earliest marathon swims was accomplished in 1875 by Captain Matthew Webb, when he became the first person to swim across the English Channel. Similarly, perhaps the most famous marathon swim of all-time was accomplished in 1926 by Gertrude Ederle, when she became, at 19 years of age, the first woman to swim across the English Channel. In doing so, she demolished the existing world record for the crossing, by employing the crawl stroke technique. The Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming includes three of the most well-known