Florian Wellbrock also shows his class in his second World Championship race in Singapore.

Florian Wellbrock has won his second gold medal at the World Open Water Swimming Championships. The 27-year-old also crowned himself world champion in the five-kilometer race. He won gold over the double distance on Wednesday.

Today in Singapore, he prevailed ahead of silver medalist Gregorio Paltrinieri of Italy and third-placed Frenchman Marc-Antoine Olivier. For Wellbrock, it was his seventh open water world championship title overall. The only more successful open water swimmer at the world championships is Thomas Lurz. The second German competitor, Oliver Klemet, was unable to compete for a medal.

Wellbrock is making great strides toward becoming the guarantor of success for the German Swimming Association that he once was. After his disastrous Olympic Games in Paris last summer, he has regained his top form.

Wellbrock's first victory, which he swam to in a dominant fashion, provided great satisfaction and boosted his self-confidence. "It's really satisfying that not giving up was worth it," said Wellbrock, who had even considered retiring after the Olympics.

National coach Bernd Berkhahn, who trained Wellbrock in Magdeburg and led him back to his former strength, was also relieved. "All the favorites were here. He won gold in the Olympic distance. That's almost equivalent to gold at the Olympic Games," he said after the impressive World Championship opening. Even the Italian coach congratulated the athlete and coach on "turning things around together. That's fantastic."

With his second victory in the second ocean race at Palawan Beach, Wellbrock once again underscored his exceptional open water prowess. He achieved the feat of winning gold at the five- and ten-kilometer World Championships for the second time since 2023.

With water temperatures once again exceeding 30 degrees Celsius and the heat even higher outside, Wellbrock swam in the leading group from the start. He held on to second place for a long time, then moved forward and was never caught again.

The women's race had already started before Wellbrock's. Australian Moesha Johnson, who also trains in Magdeburg, also secured her second title from Singapore. Celine Rieder finished fifth. She was the only German competitor. Jeannette Spiwoks was unable to compete due to health problems.

The German open water team will be challenged again on Saturday night (CEST). The races in the new Knockout Sprint are scheduled for the evening.