Start station

Men's starting pontoon at the 3 km Knockout Sprints at the World Aquatics Open Water Swimming World Cup race in Golfo Aranci, Italy on 10-11 October 2025

Women's starting pontoon or start station at the 2008 Beijing Olympic 10K Marathon Swim

Starting pontoon on Lake Balaton, Hungary at the 2017 FINA World Championships. Photo by Deep Blue Media.

noun - A starting pontoon is a floating station at the start of an open water swimming competition course that can support the weight of several athletes as well as coaches, officials, and volunteers.

Start stations are often set against land, fixed objects or a pier for stability, but can also be independently anchored along the race course in order to provide a stationary platform to allow (a) swimmers to start and/or finish an open water race, (b) coaches and trainers to provide hydration and fuel to athletes during an open water swimming race, or (c) officials to stand and judge a race or a specific area in a race such as a turn buoy or feeding station. The pontoon may be constructed from a variety of materials.

Usage

The athletes positioned themselves along the pontoon that was floating five meters from the race course.

Synonyms

Feeding station, pontoon, dock, raft, platform, starting pontoon

External links

• Betlehem Blast, Adding To The Open Water Swimming Lexicon
• Swim Starts In The Pool and Open Water Through The Ages
• Open Water Swimming
• Marathon Swimming
• I Got Stung
• Pool Open Water
• Daily News of Open Water Swimming
• Olympic 10K Marathon Swim
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• World Professional Marathon Swimming Federation
• Openwaterpedia
• Open Water Swimming Race Calendar
• World's Top 100 Open Water Swims
• Tsugaru Channel Swimming Association
• Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
• America's Top 50 Open Water Swims
• Sponsor My Swim
• Should Ice Swimming Be In The Olympics? Yes!
• If Ice Swimming Were In The Olympics, What Are The Rules?