FINA announced last week it’s new Athletes Committee for 2013-2017. This group is expected to stand as a consultative body to FINA to express the opinions of the world’s aquatic sports athletes. Among former chairs and vice-chairs of this committee include swimming juggernauts like Alexander Popov, Janet Evans, and Gustavo Borges.
This year is no different, with Chinese diver Minxia Wu, winner of 4 Olympic golds and 7 World Championships, has been appointed as the new chairman, replacing the legendary Alexander Popov.
The Vice-Chair role will remain in Brazilian hands, as Gustavo Borges has handed it off to 2012 Olympic silver medalist Thiago Pereira. Other big-name swimmers added to the new Committee include Kenyan Jason Dunford, World Record holder and swimming superstar Aaron Peirsol, Bulgaria’s Petar Stoychev, Olympic champion Camelia Potec, and Australia’s Patrick Murphy. Popov will remain on the committee, just as a European continental representative, and the committee will be liasoned by Russian Federation president Vladimir Salnikov (an incredible swimmer in his day as well).
Peirsol is serving his second-straight term on the committee, as is Slovaki’a Martina Moravcova.
The full committee can be seen below:
Chairman: Ms. WU MINXIA (CHN)
Vice Chairman: Mr. PEREIRA Thiago (BRA)
Honorary Secretary: Ms HEYNS Penny (RSA)
AFRICA:
Mr. DUNFORD Jason (KEN)
AMERICAS:
Mrs. SANCHEZ SOTO Laura Aleida (MEX)
Mr. PEIRSOL Aaron (USA)
ASIA:
Ms. TANAKA OULEVEY Miyako (JPN)
EUROPE:
Mr. STOYCHEV Petar (BUL)
Ms POTEC Camelia (ROU)
Mr. POPOV Alexander (RUS)
Ms MORAVCOVA Martina (SVK)
OCEANIA:
Mr. MURPHY Patrick (AUS)
Bureau Liaison: Mr Vladimir Salnikov
FINA also named their coaches committee, chaired by Argentina’s Arsenio Oswaldo. The new committee will include USA Swimming National Team Director Frank Busch, Dutch coach Jacco Verhaeren as the Vice-Chairman, South African coach Graham Hill, and just one woman: British synchro coach Elizabeth Price. This full list is below as well:
Chairman: Mr. ARSENIO Oswaldo (ARG)
Vice Chairman: Mr. VERHAEREN Jacco (NED)
Honorary Secretary: Mr. SCOTT Michael (AUS)
AFRICA:
Mr. MUSEMBI Isaac Kyalo (KEN)
Mr. HILL Graham (RSA)
AMERICAS:
Mr. LAROUCHE Michel (CAN)
Mr. BUSCH Frank (USA)
ASIA:
Mr. ZHONG Shaozhen (CHN)
Mr. Mohsen REZVANI (IRI)
EUROPE:
Mrs. PRICE Elizabeth (GBR)
Dr. KEMENY Dénes (HUN)
Mr. CAGNOTTO Franco Giorgio (ITA)
Bureau Liaison: Mr Fernando Carpena