The Olympic 1500m champion's dream of adding the inaugural 10km title to his treasury is well and truly alive after he burned a domestic field of marathon specialists to qualify for a place in Seville next May.

It remains to be seen what effect all this will have, if any, on his ailing supremacy over 30 laps in the pool but there is no question that Hackett is an athlete beyond athletes.

In Australia's Olympic qualifier at Penrith, Sydney, Hackett defeated specialist Ky Hurst, who claimed the second spot for Australian, a shoal of others with more experience of the 10km open water event. The still course went in Hackett's favour but then so too will Beijing favour pool swimmers: the event will take place on the rowing course: the biggest laneless pool we may ever see at the Olympic Games (it is even chlorinated!)

Asked about the Olympic pool-open water double, a jubilant Hackett told the Aussie media: 'Of course that would be fantastic and it would be nice to live that dream, that is for sure.'

Hurst said that Hackett was now the man to beat over 10km in Beijing. He will accompany Hackett to Seville for the FINA open water event that serves as a qualifier for a place in Beijing.

Hurst said that the world would now be scared of what Hackett may be capable of: 'He is Grant Hackett, he is the (1500m) world record holder and has been the best 1500m swimmer for the last 10 years. He is the man to beat and he showed that today and these guys are going to be scared. There is no doubt Grant is one of the ultimate distance swimmers and 10km is obviously in his program and he is as hungry as ever.'

Hackett's range harks back to the 1910-40 era, when it was relatively common for 100m and 200m swimmers to attempt such things as Channel crossing and other open water swims. He has been 200m long-course, 400m short-course, 800 and 1500m short and long-course world record holder and now stands in line to take the inaugural Olympic marathon honour after clocking 1hr 54min 39.95sec to Hurst's 1:54:44.50.

Reports suggest that Hackett looked 'fresh' at the end while others looked for for the local clinic. Third went to another pool swimmer, Travis Nederpelt, on 1:54:50.89.

Hackett said: 'You wonder if you are going to get through 10km, if you are not going to be totally fresh as people have tapered. There was that nervousness but I knew I had done the work. I felt pretty good. I was always holding back that slight bit for that last 200-250m in case someone came up beside me.'

The women's event went to Melissa Gorman ahead of Brooke Fletcher.