The 45th annual Rehoboth Beach Patrol Lifeguard Olympics event was held July 28 on the beaches of Baltimore and Maryland avenues, where 12 beach patrols from Delaware and Maryland competed for bragging rights and prepared to compete at the U.S. Lifesaving Association Nationals Aug. 11-13, in Hermosa Beach, Calif. Ocean City Beach Patrol took top honors in this year’s competition. Bethany Beach Patrol took second place and Sea Colony Beach Patrol took third.

The winning 4-by-200 soft sand sprint team from Dewey Beach Patrol comprises (l-r) Hank D’Ambrogi, Austin Rhue, Sean Carson and Eid Nouhra.

North Shores Beach Patrol’s Chase Norton, right, touches Josh Reinhold to start the third leg of the run-swim-run relay.

Taking first in the run-swim-run was Sea Colony Beach Patrol. Shown are (l-r) Marlan McElroy, Bailey Noel, Lexi Santor and Aleksander Crancharov.

Bethany Beach Patrol’s Brenden Keane beats Dewey Beach Patrol’s Eid Nouhra to win the beach flags competition.

Bethany Beach Patrol’s Brenden Keane gets hoisted on the squad’s shoulders after winning the beach flags competition.

Rehoboth Beach Patrol’s Eliza Lust, left, and Brooke Balducci assist in scoring and holding finish line flags.

Assisting with the beach flags competition are RBP guards (l-r) Rawley Florax, Meredith Lockwood and Hunter Mcfalls.

Dion Stevenson, left, and Alicia Lenoir of Rehoboth Beach Patrol handle check-ins at the RBP shack. Lenior took top honors in the mile run competition.

Suzannah Mills of the Delaware Seashore State Parks squad leaves the surf during the half-mile swim.

Bethany Beach Patrol’s Quinn Macualey, center, battles to the finish with Sea Colony’s Marlan McElroy, left, and North Bethany’s Ethan Haggerty during the half-mile swim.