Three new contenders have added their names into the hat to host the 2018 and 2020 FINA Short Course World Championships, the organization announced today.
The 6 bidders who traveled to Lausanne, Switzerland on Monday for more information were leaked a few days ago, but today FINA announced three additional interested hosts who couldn’t make the meeting, but are interested in hosting those meets.
Lima, Peru; Valencia, Spain; and New Zealand were the three non-present interested parties, and like the other 6 will have until September 4th, 2014 to submit their formal bids.
Lima, Peru hosted the 2011 Junior World Championships at the Campo del Marte pool: a picturesque, outdoor, three-sided swim stadium that after falling into somewhat of disrepair, has been restored and covered into a gorgeous indoor facility. Lima is hosting the 2019 Pan Am Games, and will likely use that pool for said event.
New Zealand hasn’t hosted any really big meets in some time, though they are the hosts for this month’s Oceania Championships, which are expected to be the best version of that meet we’ve seen in decades.
Valencia, while not a regular on any hosting circuit, has the advantage of being in a country that has successfully hosted many events in the past including the 2013 FINA World Aquatics Championships. They also have the benefit of having hired Myrtha to build three competition pools in the last decade. As a major sponsor, Myrtha can have significant influence over these proceedings, and were one of the FINA suppliers specifically in attendance at the meeting this weekend.
The full list of 9 interested candidates:
bidding with host cities are:
- Astana, Kazakhstan;
- Copenhagen, Denmark;
- Hangzhou, China; and
- Tokyo, Japan
- Lima, Peru
- Valencia, Spain
Also showing interest, without a specific city, are:
- UAE
- Russia
- New Zealand