We take a look into the world of marathon swimming. What motivates distance swimmers to do the huge miles week in week out? How do they prepare for big races? We talk with the 45km Manhattan Island swim world record holder, Oliver Wilkinson about:

• Training for distance events and the number of kilometers he does weekly leading up to a big race
• What he eats the night before to ‘carb load’ and how he refuels during a race
• Finding the right stroke rhythm quickly
• Which aspects of his technique he focuses on in training
• How hard he works his kick in long distance swims
• Dealing with the mental challenges in cold water and endurance races