FINA revealed Tuesday that the 2024 World Championships (LC) will run from February 2-18, 2024 in Doha, Qatar. This means that the typically-biannual competition is set to end just 159 days before the opening of the Paris Olympic Games.
The 2024 edition was originally slated to take place in November 2023—at the time the latest the event has ever been contested in the calendar year—but was pushed back to early 2024 after the 2022 championships in Fukuoka, Japan was postponed to 2023 due to COVID concerns.
These newly-revealed dates were not exactly welcomed with open arms, as several elite swimmers took to social media to voice their concerns on the timing.
Great Britain’s most decorated Olympian at a single Games Duncan Scott questioned the announcement, stating, “I’d love to know which (if any) athletes were asked about this decision 2023 July Worlds…6 months later…Jan 2024 Worlds and then July 2024 Olympics. A totally bizarre decision and one I hope gets reconsidered! Surely just move it to 2025?”
I’d love to know which (if any) athletes were asked about this decision 🧐
2023 July Worlds…6 months later…Jan 2024 Worlds and then July 2024 Olympics.A totally bizarre decision and one I hope gets reconsidered! Surely just move it to 2025? @fina1908 https://t.co/qtbTkol3Fu
— Duncan Scott MBE (@Dunks_Scott) July 12, 2022
His British teammates James Guy and Adam Peaty were also leary of the February timeframe.
“I ain’t going” is how Guy succinctly worded his reaction, while Peaty said, “It’ll be interesting to see what Athletes thought having a World Championships after 3 years in a row of them that it would be a good idea with the Olympics that year too. January just isn’t the right time IMO.”
I ain’t going https://t.co/kKzk7hFatc
— James Guy (@Jimbob95goon) July 13, 2022
It’ll be interesting to see what Athletes thought having a World Championships after 3 years in a row of them that it would be a good idea with the Olympics that year too. January just isn’t the right time imo. https://t.co/dMgUPtM7bg
— Adam Peaty OBE (@adam_peaty) July 12, 2022
Former General Manager of the International Swimming League (ISL) team London Roar Rob Woodhouse commented, “So much for @fina1908 putting athletes first. And they will try and force top athletes to go by making it the qualifier for Olympic relays. National swim federations need to stop this.”
The revised calendar of major international events now looks as follows from 2022 through Paris 2024.
2022
- July 28th -August 8th – Commonwealth Games
- August 11th – August 21st – European Championships (50m)
- August 24th – August 27th – Junior Pan Pacific Championships
- August 30th – September 4th – World Junior Championships
September 10th – September 25th – Asian GamesPOSTPONED, TBD- December 13th – December 18th – FINA Short Course World Championships – FINA Short Course World Championships
2023
- May – Southeast Asian Games
- May 6th – May 21st – Central American & Caribbean (CAC) Games
- July 14th – 30th – FINA World Championships (50m)
- August – FINA World Junior Championships
- October 20th – November 5th – Pan American Games
- November – European Short Course Championships
- TBD – 2023 African Games
2024
I see the Junior Pan pacific champs is not worth adding to your calendar?
Are they gonna make this mandatory for relay qualification for the Paris Olympics?
I don’t think so
Olympics qualifications start from and include Fukuoka
FINA have changed the relay qualification from 2023 World’s in Fukuoka to only the top 3 instead of the top 12 to qualify for Paris. Effectively FINA forcing most countries to go to Doha. Of course in doing so they hand a massive relay advantage to USA and Aus who will qualify the most teams in the top three. Another massive own goal for FINA!! In one foul swoop they are back to their old ways – new leadership, same old decision making… So much for fairness and all the noise about putting the athletes first….
Why DOHA? HOW MUCH DID THEY PAY?
Why does SS keep leaving Junior Pan Pacs out of the calendar? Has it been ditched in favour of Junior Worlds?
Yes I believe so. Along with Sr pan pacs for this summer.
This is different to Senior Pan Pacs which was cancelled long ago. The Pan Pacs countries already announced teams this year for Junior Pan Pacs and both Swimming Canada and USA Swimming websites only list Junior Pan Pacs in their calendars, no Junior Worlds.
Junior Pan Pacs is still in the Swimming Canada and USA Swimming calendars instead of Junior Worlds.
I think the dates for worlds short course this year are Dec13-18
Finally someone speaking up, and I’m kinda sure the list of athletes opposing this madness will be increasing.
Ok postponing Olympics, ok postponing Worlds and scheduling them two months prior to Euros, we all know it was due to an extreme situation, but from 2023 on the only thing to be done should be resuming the pre-pandemic calendar.
FINA failed to do this not really complicated thing
Well this didn’t take long.
I believe Kazan is slated as the host for 2025 and Budapest for 2027. Why not just push back Doha to 2025, Kazan to 2027 and Budapest to 2029? That solves the scheduling issue while also not costing FINA any revenue (otherwise I would suggest canceling Kazan for obvious reasons but FINA is definitely hoping they can still get their money and just have their fingers crossed things with Russia stabilize by then).
It is possible that with the pandemic and the 2021 world championship getting pushed back FINA feels like they need (a word up for interpretation…) that revenue from another host, but even so could they not be a bit more… Read more »
Push 2024 to 2025, 2027 in Budapest and 2029 in Kazan.
Or they could just cancel Kazan and move the Jan ’24 Worlds to that date instead. Who’s going to send a team to Kazan anyway other than Belarus, China and… Venezuela maybe?
This is probably just my inner cynic talking but it seems like the only reason FINA would schedule like that is because the bribes were big.
The line between “bribes” and “event hosting fee” might be a little blurry, but I don’t think it’s as nefarious as you think. There doesn’t have to be bribes, there’s just an ‘out loud $10 million+ hosting fee for these meets.
Moving this one to 2025 results in a net loss of one World Championship and one World Championship hosting fee, plus whatever other penalties might be written into the contract.
I hate these 2024 Worlds as much as everyone else, but I do understand the reason they’re moving forward with the meet, and I would probably do the same in their position, though I might try to be creative and find a different format for the event.
Maybe head-to-head… Read more »
The only place I know money is changing hands is Braden Keith publicly defending FINA…
Oohh
Whoa.. you are about to unleash the ire from all the Braden groupies. Good luck.
What?
Who?
I would absolutely clarify – had I written it – that I meant bribes. Suitcase of money left for 3 seconds at the Munich Central Station, at the elevator for the DB Lounge. In Soccer, Olympics, there have been bribes, why should it be different?
I’m sure there are bribes in swimming. They’re a little less overt – tends to be more along the lines of somebody’s business or somebody’s family member’s business gets a contract from FINA or USA Swimming or another NGB. That is what was happening in Brazil.
But like…bribes don’t have to be the explanation for why they’re still holding this meet. $15 million in out-loud money is plenty explanation enough.
Yes, but. How would it look in a movie “ somebody’s business or somebody’s family member’s business gets a contract” vs… 🙂
I’m sure there is a “if you start a war, you forfeit a refund” clause in these contracts. Or something that can be interpreted accordingly. So they should cancel Kazan and move it to ’25, like Scott suggested.
They tried that with Mexico, they never paid the cancellation fee if I recall right.
I could see a smaller and make-for-TV special format as an alternative, but I still believe that there is more money changing hands than a “hosting fee.”