Wellbrock Wins 10 km and 3 km Sprint in Cancún

On the warm, restless water off Cancún, Florian Wellbrock took everything. The German distance star won the men’s 10 km and 3 km knockout sprint on consecutive days at the opening World Aquatics Open Water Swimming World Cup of 2026/27, leaving no doubt about his early-season form.

Calm control in bumpy surf

The Friday 10 km unfolded in small, choppy waves and a water temperature of 28.6 degrees Celsius. Wellbrock kept his long, controlled stroke near the front throughout, passing the first lap in second place behind Marc-Antoine Olivier before settling into a leading rhythm. The German later explained his tactic was to save energy, especially in the first five kilometres, because warm, choppy water makes a swimmer lose a lot of power.

Domenico Acarenza won silver by shadowing Wellbrock’s line. Bronze went to David Betlehem, who had recovered from an ear infection that forced him to miss nearly two weeks of training, and who noted that nobody could swim faster in those waves.

A sprint decided around one buoy

The 3 km showdown on Saturday became a shoulder-to-shoulder tussle between Wellbrock and Betlehem for most of the final 500-metre lap. Wellbrock took the first buoy of that closing circuit in front, then accelerated hard in the final 150 metres and cemented his lead with an excellent last turn.

Olivier rallied for bronze by saving energy across the first two laps.

At the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore he claimed his seventh world open-water title.

His Cancún double arrived with a quiet statement of intent.