| Open water swimming at the 1998 World Aquatics Championships | |
| Hostcity: | Perth, Australia |
| Events: | 6 |
| Previous: | 1994 |
| Next: | 2001 |
See main article: 1998 World Aquatics Championships.
The Open Water Swimming events at the 8th FINA World Aquatics Championships were swum in the ocean off Perth, Western Australia on January 6 and 11, 1998. The discipline featured 4 events: a 5-kilometer race, or "5K", for males and females, and a 25-kilometer race (25K) for males and females. It was the first time the 5K was raced a World Championships.[1] The races featured 80 swimmers from 26 nations.
| 5K | Aleksey Akatyev | 55:18.6 | Ky Hurst | 55:24.9 | Luca Baldini | 55:37.4 | |
| 25K | Aleksey Akatyev | 5:05:42.1 | David Meca | 5:07:22.9 | Gabriel Chaillou | 5:07:52.6 |
| 5K | Erica Rose | 59:23.5 | Edith van Dijk | 1:00:58.5 | Peggy Büchse | 1:01:05.8 | |
| 25K | Tobie Smith | 5:31:20.1 | Peggy Büchse | 5:32:19.2 | Edith van Dijk | 5:38.06.9 |
| 5K | John Flanagan Austin Ramirez Erica Rose | 2:52:12.2 | Aleksey Akatyev Evgueni Bezroutchenko Olga Gouseva | 2:52:16.7 | Luca Baldini Fabio Venturini Valeria Casprini | 2:52:41.6 | |
| 25K | Claudio Gargaro Fabrizio Pescatori Valeria Casprini | 16:10:18.2 | Grant Robinson Mark Saliba Tracey Knowles | 16:22:54.3 | Tobie Smith Nathan Stooke Chuck Wiley | 16:46:13.3 |