European Aquatics president Antonio Silva is being ousted as head of the Portuguese Swimming Federation (FPN) following a five-month government investigation into ethics violations, complicating his previously uncontested campaign for European Aquatics re-election.
The Portuguese Institute of Sport and Youth directed the FPN to dismiss Silva earlier this week for transferring the intellectual property rights of a water-safety project in his own name to the FPN. Silva’s brand, “A Prova de Agua — Sobrevivencia e Prontidao Aquatica,” was designed around teaching swimming classes and training teachers.
The Jan. 16 judgement came less than week after European Aquatics opted to take no action against Silva because the information offered by whistleblower Alexandra Jorge, the former secretary of the FPN’s General Assembly, “did not justify any doubts about the integrity of Mr. Silva as European Aquatics president or candidate for the European Aquatics presidency.”
The Netherlands and Croatia are reportedly pushing for Silva to continue his European Aquatics re-election effort as the sole candidate despite the recent controversy. However, the European Aquatics constitution requires nominations for president to made only by the federation “where the candidate is under jurisdiction.” The election is set for Jan. 27 in Athens as part of the European Aquatics annual Congress.
“I’m happy that the decision sided with integrity,” Jorge told Craig Lord. “This was never personal. It is about doing the right thing and making sure that all who work in sport do so with integrity follow the rules that apply to everyone and create a healthy environment for the athletes and those who support them.”
Silva was elected president of European Aquatics (then LEN) back in February of 2022 with 96% of the vote among 50 federations. The previous European Aquatics president, Paolo Barelli, was also accused of financial misconduct in 2020 before Silva replaced him.