Last month, the Danish Swimming Federation announced that the 2016 Danish Open, Denmark’s Olympic qualifier, would host prelims at 1:00 p.m. and finals at 10:00 p.m. local time to mirror the late night start times for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. The group has reversed its decision amidst criticism from Danish athletes and coaches.
The 2016 Danish Open will take place April 13 to 17, and, with the decision reversal, its sessions will start at 10:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. (and on the final day, finals may begin at 5:00 p.m.).
The change came in response to discontent from the Danish swim community, including one swimmer who posted the story on Facebook stating “Please tell me they’re joking!” Others had criticized the strain that the change would have put on volunteers and the many competing swimmers who have no chance of qualifying for Rio.
Danish swimming has shown some promise over the last decade, and, although the team came home medal-less from London, it would considered a disappointment if they face the same result in Rio. Possible medal contenders include Lotte Friis, who finished third in the 800 free at this weekend’s Austin Arena Pro Swim Series, and Jeannette Ottesen, who grabbed silvers in Kazan in both the 50 and 100 fly.
The decision to host the Rio Olympic prelims and finals in the early afternoon and late night to accommodate American broadcasters was also met with considerable opposition, but those start times are here to stay.