Danish Olympic Qualifying Meet Will Follow Rio Start Times

In a move that is sure to either be praised or ridiculed based on the team’s performance in Rio, the Danish Swimming Union has decided (Link in Danish) to follow the schedule for prelims and finals for the Rio Olympics at their Olympic qualifier this coming April.

The Danish Open is held annually and is always used as some sort of qualifying meet. This year the competition will be from April 13th-17th. The preliminary session will begin at 1:00 PM, while the finals will not start until 10:00 PM, local time. To be clear, they will mirroring Rio in Danish local time, not Rio time that would make the preliminaries and finals start even later.

The decision was made in order to prepare Danish Olympians for some of the unusual conditions they will face in Rio. High Performance Director Lars Green Bach stated that “The entire sporting department [has decided] that this is crucial for the preparation and pursuit of Denmark’s Olympic potential”

Within Denmark the move has been met with criticism by Danish coaches and swimmers. One swimmer posted the story on facebook stating “Please tell me they’re joking!” while others have criticized the strain that such a competition will put on volunteers as well as the many swimmers that take part who have no chance of Rio qualifying.

The competition is also used as a qualifier for the European Junior Championship, a meet that will take place in the same time zone (Hungary) with normal starting times.

Still, the Danish Swimming Union wants to use the competition to get all involved behind Denmark’s best. While Danish swimming has shown promise over the last decade, they still left London without any medals and it would be considered a disappointment if Rio were the same result. Summoning up support for the “best” is often a challenge in a country where equality is valued above all else.