The FINA Bureau approved today the organisation of a new and additional swimming event format, to debut in 2019: the “FINA Champions Swim Series”. It will consist of a three-leg competition, between March and May, aimed at Olympic and World medallists, in an innovative format aimed at creating a world-class platform for elite swimming and to develop a fresh focus on the highest-level athletes in FINA events.

The Series will be an exceptional showcase for the sport and its top swimmers, that combines pure competition, together with innovative sports presentation and entertainment. It will comprise events of 50m, 100m and 200m in freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly (as well as the 400m free and 200m IM), in addition to four relay races. The programme for the FINA Champions Swim Series events will include only finals, where the best four swimmers in each event will compete in individual races. The competition will be held in 50metre pools, and each leg will be contested over three days (Friday to Sunday).
The athletes’ participation in this exclusive Series will be on an invitation-only basis, comprising the Olympic and World champion, the WR holder and the best in the world ranking in each event. These swimmers will receive both prize money and appearance fees to attend this prestigious event, and will have all their expenses (travel, accommodation and meals) covered.
Moreover, the participating swimmers will be grouped in teams – on a continental or sponsor basis, with each team comprising 24 athletes (12 men, 12 women).

“In its constant effort for innovation and providing new opportunities for the stars of our sport, FINA is very pleased to launch this new competition. It will complete in the best possible way our swimming calendar throughout the year: firstly, this Champions Swim Series; then, our World Championships; and finally our Swimming World Cup circuit, as the year progresses”, considered FINA President Dr Julio C. Maglione. “By creating this additional elite competition, FINA will generate a true Swimming show, where sport presentation and Stars’ promotion are key concepts for a successful meet”, added Dr Maglione.
With an extensive and well-developed range of broadcast partners throughout the globe, alongside digital distribution platforms like FINALIVE.TV, and national federations with proven event management capabilities, FINA is uniquely placed to deliver on the promise of the new FINA Champions Swim Series.
Also welcomed by the FINA Technical Swimming Committee and the FINA Athletes Committee, the FINA Champions Swim Series will provide a total of US$3.9 million in prize money, according to the following distribution:
– Individual Prize Money: US$ 2’436’000
– Relay Prize Money: US$ 648’000
– Overall Team Prize Money: US$840’000

“We strongly support this new concept, as the stars of our sport are always happy to have additional opportunities to shine. We will present swimming under a new perspective, and I am sure that spectators on site, TV viewers and digital users around the world will greatly appreciate this outstanding show. Finally, with this unprecedented level of prize money, our swimming stars will definitively be attracted by this circuit”, declared Penny Heyns, Chair of the FINA Athletes Committee.

Press release from FINA

Dean Boles from Canada has decided to leave his job as national coach at the end of 2018.

The successful Nordic championships in short course this weekend has been Dean Boles’ last task wearing the Danish national team colours as he has decided to leave his job as national coach for the Danish Swimming Federation. The national coach took the difficult decision primarily because of the distance to his family and because of a unique job opportunity in Canadian swimming sport.

– I took the decision to leave Danish swimming sport and return to Canada with very mixed feelings. It has been hard for me to take the decision of leaving Denmark and Danish swimming sport at a time when I see Danish swimming going in a very positive direction, but I have also been missing my family a lot. I have now been given a unique opportunity to get closer to my family and at the same time return to work with Canadian swimming sport and help shape the development of Swim Ontario following a new plan. It is a very special opportunity which I feel that I need to grab, says the Danish national coach Dean Boles.

High performance manager in the Danish Swimming Federation, Lars Green Bach, understands the reasons behind the decision of Dean Boles to leave Danish swimming, but he also regrets that a well-functioning cooperation both at the professional and personal level will cease at the end of the year.

– Dean Boles has done an exemplary job as Danish national swimming coach in my view. With his constant and firm focus on the international development, a strong commitment and good cooperation skills, he has contributed to crucial steps for the development of Danish swimming. Based on strong and healthy values for the work with our national team, Dean has contributed to achievements at the highest international level for Danish swimming during the period in which he has been the Danish national coach. He has also been attentive to efforts which can help strengthening the depth of Danish high performance swimming in the short run as well as the long run, and he has had a very good understanding of the work, role and responsibilities of the Danish Swimming Federation. This is why I regret Dean’s decision, and I am convinced that many others will miss him in Danish swimming sport.

Lars Green Bach also says that he does not see any reason to worry about the future despite Dean Boles’ departure since Danish swimming sport is still in a very strong position.

– The team loses a very good and important player, but the team is still here. As I see it, Danish swimming has a number of strong clubs and training environments which can continue the work together with a competent team of employees in the sports department within the framework of Danish swimming sport’s sporting strategy and action plan “From proud results to new common ambitions”. This is why I am confident that we can maintain our focus on the international development and performance of the swimmers in the national team. Clearly, we can expect that some things have to be prioritized differently or action areas must be postponed after the departure of Dean, until we have found a solution to fill the vacuum he leaves behind.

However, our ambition has not changed, it is still to keep the Danish national team at the highest international level, says the high performance manager of the Danish swimming Federation, Lars Green Bach.

Dean Boles has been national team coach since 2015. He has had, among other things, the overall professional responsibility for the national teams in the Danish Swimming Federation and cooperation with the Danish swimming clubs concerning a continuous development of high performance in Danish swimming sport.

– My 3 1/2 years in Denmark as national coach for Danish swimmers have been extremely rewarding and stimulating for me. I have been given the opportunity to cooperate with some outstanding people who feel a deep passion for their sport. It has been a privilege for me to work with Danish swimmers and feel the capability and professionalism which drives Danish swimmers to perform much better than could be expected at the international level. At this point I feel that Danish swimming is developing in a good direction, and I think that the future looks promising – especially when we look at the summer 2019 and the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020.

The Danish Swimming Federation has, in collaboration with the Danish elite sport organisation Team Denmark, started a process of finding a new candidate for the sports department who can contribute to the work with the Danish national team swimmers and their training platforms toward the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020 – and the further development toward the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.

Press release from the Danish Swimming Federation