Marc-Antoine Olivier is tipped for success in the FINA Marathon World Series ©Getty Images

France's Marc-Antoine Olivier is the hot favourite for the men's 10-kilometre race at the International Swimming Federation (FINA) Marathon World Series as the Grand Finale gets underway tomorrow and concludes on December 16 in Abu Dhabi.

The final leg of the annual circuit will see the open water athletes compete in a 10km race for men and women, as well as a 4x1500m mixed team relay.

In the latter event, each team’s four competitors, two male and two female, will swim 15000m for a total of 6km.

Last week, the Rio de Janeiro 2016 bronze medallist Olivier won the event in Israel to claim his third consecutive victory in 1hour 49min 14.90sec.

Kristof Rasovszky of Hungary was runner up in Eilat as well as Tokyo 2020 and is one to watch for the gold medal at Yas Bay.

Ana Marcela Cunha is set to be among the field for the women's 10km race in Yas Bay ©Getty Images
Ana Marcela Cunha is set to be among the field for the women's 10km race in Yas Bay ©Getty Images

In the women's event, Ana Marcela Cunha of Brazil is in fine form having been crowned champion in Israel.

She won the FINA Best Female Open Water Swimmer award in 2010, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019 prior to her maiden Olympic gold medal in Tokyo which has left many touting her for the season-end victory.

Oceane Cassignol of France will be hoping to build on her performance at the FINA UltraMarathon Swim Series 2021 in Macedonia's Ohrid in August, where she took home gold in the women’s 25km.

The 21-year-old also had success in the women’s 10km at the start of the year, securing silver in the first leg of the 2021 series in Qatar.

In addition to the Marathon World Series, Abu Dhabi is set to host the 15th FINA World Swimming Championships from December 16 to 21.