Rob Preston and Elizabeth Dornom are no strangers to endurance challenges.

As part of Australia’s entry (Team 1 AUS) into the gruelling One Water Race, an epic 250km swimrun taking over 60 hours to complete, they have tested their limits on the world stage.

Now, they’re bringing their expertise to the inaugural Swimrun Australia: Melbourne event on Saturday, the 29th of March, along Melbourne’s Bayside coastline.

Excited to be racing swimrun close to home

Despite their extensive experience, this will be the duo’s first swimrun event in Australia. The opportunity to race closer to home is an exciting change for the pair.

“Having an event close to home and encouraging our friends who have never done a swimrun race before is very exciting,” said Mr Preston.

“Despite most of our friends watching our team for hundreds of hours online, most of them have never done an event themselves.

“Since this is the first swimrun event in Melbourne, it will also be fun to see what type of athletes participate.

“Elizabeth and I have been speculating, and we reckon we will see a bunch of runners, swimmers, and triathletes taking part.”

Getting a feel for a fast Melbourne race

Compared to their ultra-endurance races, Swimrun Australia: Melbourne presents a unique challenge in a different way for this experienced team.

“We expect this course to be very fast with relatively short legs,” said Mr Preston.

“You’ll never get bored with the constantly changing legs and beautiful scenery.

“Elizabeth and I will have to keep pushing hard the whole way if we want to finish with a high result.”

Endurance is set to play a key role, says Mr Preston.

“We expect the pace to be very fast from the start with the other teams, although we’re hoping to finish strongly since we have a good endurance base from all the training we have been doing to prepare for the One Water Race.

“We also train with our swimrun-specific gear regularly, which will be an advantage compared to the first-timers or relatively newcomers to the sport.”

Lessons from One Water Race

Training for a race like the One Water Race, where the team must navigate Sweden’s archipelago under extreme conditions, differs significantly from a shorter race like the inaugural Melbourne event. Still, lessons can be carried over to the race.

“Our One Water team lives across three states of Australia, so we don’t get many opportunities to train together,” said Mr Preston.

“I live in Gippsland, and Elizabeth lives in Melbourne, so the two of us get to train together more often.

“As we prepare for the One Water Race this year, we’re looking to improve our running fitness while continuing our strength in the swims.”

One key takeaway they have learned from their ultra-endurance experiences is the importance of smooth transitions.

“Being smooth in and out of the water can make a huge impact on a race,” said Mr Preston.

“Talking to your teammate coming down to the water to make sure your equipment is ready before taking the plunge is crucial.

“Using your teammate’s strengths can help the team move quickly, particularly in the swim legs and this advice can be used in short swimruns like Melbourne or the ultramarthon ones.”

A like-minded, adventurous swimrun community

For Preston and Dornom, swimrun isn’t just about competition; it’s about the people and the community that is swimrun.

“In a world with more and more information, I feel people are becoming less adventurous and fearful of the unknown,” said Mr Preston.

“The great thing about swimrun is that you’re surrounded by like-minded, adventurous people who are keen to try new events and experiences.”

And the duo encourage newcomers to give swimrunners a go, especially when there are races on your back doorstep.

“Most runners have a fear of swimming, but the great thing about swimrun is that you get to use paddles and big pull buoys, which really aid weaker swimmers,” said Mr Preston.

“Most athletes with a basic knowledge of swimming should be able to get through a short swimrun race, and doing it with a teammate is always more fun.”

Balancing long and short races

Although their primary focus is on ultra-endurance events, Preston and Dornom enjoy the variety that shorter races bring.

“While I just did my first triathlon in 10 years, a one-hour sprint enduro, Elizabeth was off winning an Australian title at the 24-hour Rogaining Championships,” said Mr Preston.

“Having short races like Swimrun Australia’s Melbourne event in the schedule means we need to keep up quality training sessions at a faster pace, which makes training fun and exciting.”

Looking ahead to the 2025 One Water Race

After Melbourne, Preston and Dornom will shift their focus back to the One Water Race, where they will compete for the fourth time on August 19-21, 2025.

“Catching up with all our friends in the race organisation and other teams is always fun and something to look forward to,” said Mr Preston.

“Now that we know the terrain and challenges of the course, we feel more relaxed going into it.

“Each year, the One Water Race pushes us to our limits, and the longest swim is about 8km and generally comes in the middle of the second night.

“Last year, we were in the water for nearly 4.5 hours! We had tough headwinds and chop, making feeding very difficult. By the time we reached the next island, we were all quite broken.

“This year, we’re going to be applying new insights from the medical study we participated in during last year’s race.

“With this new data, we’re looking at ways to improve our nutritional intake and expect to deliver a better performance than we have previously.”

Other One Water Race teams with Australian athletes include Team 6 SWE/AUS and Team 9 CAN/AUS.

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Whether you’re an experienced athlete like Preston and Dornom or a newcomer to the sport, Swimrun Australia: Melbourne has a distance for you. Choose from the 4km Discovery race or the 15km Enduro race, the latter distance available in the popular team format.