Consistency and podium finishes at all but one World Cup stop proved to be the recipe for success for France’s Fontaine, who claimed the Men’s World Cup Leader trophy after his silver-medal win in the final 10km race of the season.
A ‘surprise’ overall win for Fontaine highlighted once again the unpredictable and exciting nature of open water swimming following the final stop of this year’s World Cup. The Frenchman has excelled in the rankings this year, obliterating his 17th-place finish from 2024 to top the table in 2025.
On a weekend that saw him take home three medals from three races in Golfo Aranci, the 26-year-old said he was ‘not expecting’ the overall win, but was delighted to do so.
“I was not expecting the overall win, but I did everything to not lose my second place [in the 10km]. When I began the season last year, I was looking for the overall win. I was hoping for a second place after Setúbal, but that's a big surprise and a really good surprise.”
It’s been a busy season for Fontaine, who competed at all four stops this year. He won silver in the Men’s 10km at the opening race in Somabay, before equalling that result in the 3km Knockout Sprint event in Setúbal.
He collected a medal of each colour at the final stop in Golfo Aranci, winning gold with Team France in the Mixed 4x1500m Relay, silver in the 10km and bronze in the 3km Knockout Sprint.
A tactical decision to hold onto gold-medal winner, David Betlehem’s, feet in the final lap proved to be the right one as he and Fontaine took a different line into the finishing chute. “It’s great, I was completely dead at the end of the race. David [Betlehem] took a different line and I was hoping he would swim really fast, faster than the group to be sure. That was a good decision so I'm happy with that!”
“I usually don't swim in front of the group like I did during the race. But I was feeling okay, luckily David was here for me.”
Having maintained a top-three position for almost the entirety of the race, his consistency in the 10km reflected his season well - one that also saw him finishing fourth in the Mixed Relay and 7th in the 3km Knockout at the World Championships in Singapore.
How The 2025 World Cup Season Played Out
From the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, here we take a look at the results and storylines of the women’s 2025 open water season.
World Cup Stop 1 - Somabay, Egypt - 21-22 February
Tough conditions set the tone for a demanding opener in Somabay, where Florian Wellbrock showed his class with a dominant swim. The Olympic champion from Tokyo 2020 broke clear midway through the race and never looked back, taking gold in 2:01:33.60.
Logan Fontaine and countrymate Marc-Antoine Olivier - who was last year’s overall winner - led the chase group and finished just 0.3 seconds apart, earning silver and bronze respectively. Rising French talent Sacha Velly was right in the mix in fifth, while Australia’s Nicholas Sloman narrowly missed the podium in fourth.
It was a strong showing for the French contingent early in the season, with three swimmers in the top five, while Wellbrock’s win marked a turning point in his form in rougher open water conditions - having always preferred calmer waters.
World Cup Stop 2 - Ibiza, Spain - 25-26 April
The scenic waters of Ibiza delivered an Italian clean sweep in the Men’s 10km event, causing upset in a race where the result looked sure to be decided until the closing lap. Andrea Filadelli, who had never previously won a major international 10km before, stormed to victory - followed closely by his Italian teammates, Dario Verani and Giuseppe Ilario.
The Italians, who are famous for their sprint finishes, turned the burners on to ultimately claim the podium spots from long-time race leaders, Kristof Rasovszky, Gregorio Paltrinieri and Oliver Klemet.
Marc-Antoine Olivier and Logan Fontaine, who worked together throughout much of the race, finished in fourth and seventh, respectively. America’s Joey Tepper claimed his best finish of the season in this race, touching in fifth overall.
World Cup Stop 3 - Setúbal, Portugal - 14-15 June
Portugal’s Setúbal served up another unpredictable finish as Marc-Antoine Olivier claimed his first win of the season in a masterfully paced swim. The French veteran found another gear on the final lap to edge out his countrymate Sacha Velly and Olympic silver medallist Oliver Klemet, who claimed silver and bronze, respectively.
At the close of the 10k in Portugal, it was Olivier who led the overall World Cup rankings and would be vying to maintain his title ahead of the fourth and final stop.
Overall 2025 winner Fontaine was the fourth athlete home (1:53:35.20) in what was a tightly packed finish, with the top six completed by Olympic Champion from Paris, Kristof Rasovsky (1:53:35.30) and Florian Wellbrock (1:53:36.50).
World Cup Stop 4 - Golfo Aranci, Sardinia - 10-11 October
In the season’s final 10km at Golfo Aranci, David Betlehem timed his sprint perfectly to take gold in 1:53:28.20 and cap off his 2025 campaign in style.
Behind him, Logan Fontaine fought for every stroke and was rewarded with silver - just three seconds back - clinching the overall men’s leader title in a stunning season finish.
Olivier, who was part of the lead pack throughout the majority of the race, couldn’t hold on to the pace on the final lap, ultimately finishing in 14th - a result which bumped him into second place in the overall standings. Third place in the hunt for the overall trophy went to Italy’s Dario Verani after what’s been another stellar season from the Italian.
Check out the final season rankings following all four stages of the Open Water Swimming World Cup 2025 season.
Leonardo Brandt De Macedo Tops Junior Rankings
Brazil’s Leonardo Brandt De Macedo was ‘happy and grateful’ to be crowned this year’s World Junior Men’s Leader.
The 19-year-old competed in all four stops of the series, with his best result coming from the final 10km of the season in Golfo Aranci, where he finished 16th overall.
“I’ve been aiming for this since the beginning of the year,” he told World Aquatics. “So, I planned to do all the stops and when I saw that I was in a good position in the overall, I knew that I could win it.
“When I won, I was really happy and really grateful for all my coaches, for everyone who supported me in this journey.”
Speaking on his stand-out performance in Sardinia, he said: “Yesterday, I felt that I could do my best. So, even with the conditions, I thought that I could stay in the group and stay with the top positions and fight to the end to bring Brazil to the top as well as my junior rankings, too.”
Brandt De Macedo’s win marks the second year in a row that the junior men’s title has been won by a Brazilian athlete, with his team Matheus Melecchi winning in 2024.
“Last year, I got second place. My teammate Matheus won it, and I thought it would be really cool to maintain the tradition to Brazil to win this ranking. I could see my improvement in the stops.
Looking ahead to next season, he plans to focus on the 2026 World Cup as well as securing a qualification spot for the upcoming Pan American Games.
“I’d like to thank my club, Clube Curitibano because they are sponsoring this, as well as my coach, Ken Sorge. His presence is very good, he motivates me both in the pool and here in the open water competitions as well.”