The 2019 Australian Swimming World Trials concluded in Brisbane last night, where the nation saw one of its most successful domestic championship meets in recent years. The meet rendered a stellar squad of 27 men and women, veterans and emerging athletes, headed to Gwangju, Korea next month to take on the world.
However, fans in Australia may be left in the dark as to how the team fares against the best of the best, as its sports governing body has yet to sell the broadcast rights to the largest competitive aquatic event outside of the Olympic Games.
Per The Daily Telegraph ($), no Australian broadcaster has bought the rights to the 2019 World Championships due to the high fee FINA is demanding. If this situation holds, the only opportunity for Australians to view the championships would be via FINA’s own online streaming service.
However, this isn’t something entirely new, as the Aussie World Swimming Trials itself was without a television broadcast. Prelims and finals were only available via live streaming.
Swimming Australia told SwimSwam, “Swimming Australia does not have the rights to the World Swimming Championships so we cannot live stream it.”
The World Championships kick-off on July 12th, therefore, a deal may yet be struck.
This proves once again Australia is not a swimming-mad country as many think. It gets little tv exposure and column inches in newspapers and magazines. It is a niche sport. It’s laughable that many Americans in particular think that Australian swimmers at home have the popularity of major footballers, tennis stars etc.
There was a time when Thorpey, Hackett, Susie O’Neill, Perkins were household names, it’s changed dramatically in recent years.
Right on the money, StraightBlack !! It DID have a significant profile during the mid-later 90s (lead-in to Sydney Olympics as Rob has indicated) and there was a residual legacy that lingered for the next 2 Olympic cycles. Whilst the later 00’s economic crisis didn’t bite AUS as badly as most, the public appetite for public $$$ on Olympic sport declined appreciably when there has been major demands for capital expenditure on core infrastructure (hospitals/transport)/education. There is also the reality that swimming is no longer a “sport of the people” but rather, due to the expense, one that can generally only be pursued by those of more affluent backgrounds.
Whilst AUS has always been, and will remain, a strong swimming… Read more »
Commonwobat, totally not surprised by your comment, but I think you are a little delirious.
Now, there is no doubt that the US is by a fairly long way the best swimming nation in the world & that they have no real rivals. Apart from the dominance of the East German & Chinese women’s swimmers, the Aussies would clearly be no 2, ignoring the golden periods, you just have to look at the strength of the relays, outside the Americans very few would have had the longevity of dominance of the 4X100 womens & invariably the other 2 women’s relays, the Aussie girls are medaling. While the men doesn’t have the consistency, they are also there & thereabouts behind… Read more »
Ok Rob, Lets just look at the Olympics post Munich up to Sydney. Montreal 0G – 1medal, Moscow (even w US boycott) 2G – 7 med, LA 1G – 12 medals, Seoul 1G – 3med, Barcelona 1G – 9med, Atlanta 2G – 12med. Post Beijing, London 1G 10 med, Rio 3G 10medals.
You speak of relay strength and I completely agree that relays medals have been bulking up medal tallies from Sydney onwards but has this always been the case. During the first “golden age”, AUS relays did have a reasonable strike rate but apart from “Mean Machine” 4XMED in Moscow, there wasn’t another relay medal until Atlanta. Prior to Melbourne, you need to go back to 1924 to find… Read more »
Surveys always show swimming is the number 1 participation sport, so the country is swimming mad in one sense, but not as a commercial and spectator sport.
In the sense that kids go swimming during summer (the vast majority of AUS population is along the coasts (primarily east coast) then that is still correct. With regards to swimming as a competitive sport, where even up to 20 years ago it was once drawing from a wide cross-section of society, the expense means it now draws from an ever contracting talent pool. Swimming is not an orphan in this regard, its now common across a number of Olympic sports but swimming is its most telling case
Football (soccer to those in the southern states) is easily the highest participation sport in Australia.
Cricket is the most popular sport in Australia. Then comes Soccer, Rugby (Union and League), AFL.
Hockey, Basketball, Swimming after that.
Netball is huge in numbers too
I think surveys show cricket isn’t near the top..it’s time has passed.
Hopefully it’s not like the Pan PACs. I can’t help thing Swimming Australia has stuffed up by having both Channel 7 and Optus sponsor.. as both would want to offer streaming via their platforms! This better get fixed. If not it’s a disgrace !!
Iread rhe numbers once & conckuded FINA was gouging Australia . I’m prepared to forego it if is exploitive .
I just wonder why the Australian rights fee doesn’t get returned to Swimming Australia. Or at least most of it. Same with other countries. Do we really let FINA keep all this money made off the swimming powers.
If I can watch it without Giaan Rooney commentating, I will be happy with the live stream. But seriously, for FINA to throw away one of its largest markets and biggest fan bases is really stupid.
I will be in Myanmar for the first half, suspect I will be streaming there!
Gian is the Aussie version of Rowdy !!
I know we can get that commentator from
The Pan PACs back.
On a serious note bring back Dennis Cometti !!
Cometti, Ray Warren, Bruce, they were great, with back up comments Nicole Livingstone & Grant Hackett.
Nicole is absolutely wonderful as a commentator. Have watched / listened to her for years until FINA changed.
Dennis was great !
This comes as zero surprise. AUS Olympic rights holders have lost a barrow load of $$$ for the last 2 Summer Olympics as ratings have fallen drastically from their previous high. 7 Network is clearly looking to find as many loop-holes as possible in its contract with Swimming AUS. FINA is certainly being greedy (what’s new) just like the IOC although the latter is finding significant push-back in many Western countries where the public appetite for Olympic sport(s) is significantly reduced …. and broadcasters respond accordingly.
They (channel 7) promote a game AFL (Australian Rules football), where there is no int’l flavour & then wonder why.
The major football codes are where the peak sports ratings (and thus advertising revenue ) lie. Peak events for the major intl professional sports are OK for revenue but given there’s usually major time differences (thus well out of prime viewing hours) they’re far less lucrative than the domestic pro sports. When it comes to $$$, AFL v swimming is a non-starter. Not sure when 7’s contract expires with Swimming AUS but it would be a major surprise to see it renewed/extended.
“due to the high fee FINA is demanding”. Shocking.