Swimming world championships: FINA’s insane switch set to backfire before Paris Olympics

FINA’s jaw-dropping decision to hold the 2024 world championships just six months before the Paris Olympics is likely to backfire spectacularly, writes JULIAN LINDEN.

Just when everyone thought it was safe to get back in the water, swimming’s world governing body has just reminded everyone what a laughing stock it really is.

All the promises about putting the interests of swimmers first after the shameless decision to hold the 2016 Rio Olympic finals just before midnight now look like nothing more than lip service after FINA’s latest goof.

In announcing a reshuffling of the timetable for the next two world championships, which include water polo, diving and synchronised swimming, FINA has made the jaw-dropping decision to stage its showcase event in Qatar in January 2024 — just six months before the Paris Olympics.

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Emma McKeon might have to reassess her schedule with the 2024 FINA world championships and Paris Olympics only six months apart. Picture: Adam Head

As if holding a world championship in the scorching temperatures of the Persian Gulf isn’t insane enough, the timing is an insult to all the great swimmers who have won world titles before because it completely diminishes the magnitude of the event.

FINA has never held a world championship in the same year as an Olympics — and for good reason — because no swimmer who is serious about wanting to win Olympic gold will be at their peak.

FINA will only have themselves to blame if the world’s best all skip the event because they are in heavy training preparing for the Olympics and who could blame them.

FINA’s lame excuse for making the decision is that next year’s world titles, rescheduled to take place in Fukuoka, Japan in May, have been postponed because of the pandemic, with Australia already revealing it was targeting this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

The Aussies were right to call FINA’s bluff so will welcome the decision to move the next world championships in Fukuoka to 14-30 July 2023.

Ariarne Titmus in action at the 2018 FINA world championships in China. Picture: Fred Lee/Getty Images

But the 2024 decision is sporting madness.

Doha was controversially selected years ago to host the next edition, in November 2023, but instead of moving Qatar to a later date after the Paris Olympics, FINA has moved it to January 2024.

If gold medals were ever handed out for stubbornness, FINA would win every time with the new president Husain Al-Musallam going as far as to claim it was a decision that swimmers would support.

“These decisions have been taken in the best interests of everyone involved,” he said.

“FINA will continue to prioritise the welfare of competition participants and take decisions as early as possible given the circumstances, in order to provide a measure of certainty to aquatics athletes and those who support them.”