Originally Posted by
hamster
...There were 14 deaths: 13 drownings and 1 fatal bike crash. 6 out of 13 drownings occurred during short-distance (<750 m) swims. One might think that there would be more deaths in longer distance races and further down the course, but apparently not: susceptible people are most likely to have a heart attack shortly into the race...
I'd guess that shorter distance races are more likely to attract beginners doing their first race ever. Some people are very unprepared for the swim portion and get bad advice ("You don't have to know how to swim well - your wetsuit will let you float through the swim leg!").