World Aquatics facts for kids

"FINA" redirects here. For other uses, see FINA (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids
World Aquatics
Official website

Sport	Swimming diving artistic swimming water polo open water swimming high diving
Jurisdiction	International
Abbreviation	WA (World Aquatics)
Founded	19 July 1908; 116 years ago (1908-07-19)
Affiliation	Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF)
Headquarters	Lausanne, Switzerland
President	Husain Al-Musallam
Replaced	International Swimming Federation

World Aquatics, once known as FINA (which stood for "International Swimming Federation" in French), is the main group that organizes big swimming and water sports competitions around the world. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This organization helps manage sports like swimming, diving, and water polo for the Olympics and other international events. Its main office is in Lausanne, Switzerland.

World Aquatics was first started as FINA in 1908. The group officially changed its name to World Aquatics in January 2023.

World Aquatics currently looks after six water sports:

Swimming
Diving
High diving
Artistic swimming
Water polo
Open water swimming

They also organize "Masters" competitions for adults in these sports.

History of World Aquatics
Member Countries
How World Aquatics Works
Events and Competitions
- World Aquatics Championships
- Other Competitions
Sport Name Changes
Rules and Bans
- Bans for Athletes
- Bans for Russia and Belarus
See also

History of World Aquatics

FINA, now World Aquatics, was created on July 19, 1908. This happened in London, England, right after the 1908 Summer Olympics. Eight countries helped start FINA: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, and Sweden.

In 1973, the first ever FINA World Championships took place in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Athletes competed in swimming, water polo, diving, and artistic swimming.

The first permanent FINA office opened in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1986.

In 1991, open water swimming was added to the FINA World Championships.

The first FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) happened in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, in 1993. This event uses a shorter pool.

In 2010, FINA held its first World Aquatics Convention in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

High diving became part of the FINA World Championships in 2013.

In 2015, FINA held both the World Championships and the FINA World Masters Championships in Kazan, Russia. This was the first time both events happened in the same city, one after the other.

In 2018, FINA celebrated 110 years by opening a new main office in Lausanne, Switzerland.

On December 12, 2022, during a special meeting in Melbourne, Australia, the group voted to change its name to World Aquatics.

The number of countries that are members of World Aquatics has grown a lot over the years:

1908: 8 members
1928: 38 members
1958: 75 members
1978: 106 members
1988: 109 members
2000: 174 members
2008: 197 members
2010: 202 members
2012: 203 members
2015: 208 members
2016: 207 members
2017: 209 members
2023: 208 members

Member Countries

In June 2017, Bhutan became the 208th country to join FINA (now World Aquatics). Later that year, Anguilla became the 209th member. In 2023, the Philippines were removed from the list of member countries. Athletes from the Philippines competed as 'Suspended Member Federation' at the World Aquatics Championships in July 2023. Later, they had to compete as 'Neutral Independent Athletes'. Athletes from Kenya are also currently competing as 'Suspended Member Federation'. Athletes from Russia and Belarus are currently not allowed to compete. However, their countries are still listed as members. World Aquatics also lets athletes who don't belong to a member country compete as an 'Athlete Refugee Team'.

Member countries are grouped by continent. There are five main groups they can join:

World Aquatics member federations by continent.

Africa (52 members): African Swimming Confederation (CANA)
Americas (45 members): Swimming Union of the Americas (ASUA)
Asia (44 members): Asia Swimming Federation (AASF)
Europe (52 members): European Swimming League (LEN)
Oceania (15 members): Oceania Swimming Association (OSA)

Note: The number next to each continent is how many World Aquatics members are in that area. It's not always the exact number of members in that continental group.

How World Aquatics Works

World Aquatics has different groups that help it run smoothly. These include:

The Congress: This is the highest authority and makes big decisions.
The Bureau: This group helps manage the organization.
The Executive: This group handles the daily operations.
The Aquatics Integrity Unit: This group ensures fair play and honesty.
The Athletes Committee: This group represents the athletes.
Technical Committees: These groups focus on specific sports.
Specialised Committees: These groups handle special topics.

The World Aquatics Congress meets every two years, usually during the World Championships. Each member country can send two people to vote. Athletes also have a say, with 20 elected members from the Athletes Committee having one vote each.

The World Aquatics Bureau includes the President and 39 other members. These members come from different continents and include Vice Presidents and a Treasurer. The head of the Athletes Committee is also part of the Bureau.

Many other committees help manage each sport, like the Technical Open Water Swimming Committee. They also deal with issues like anti-doping. World Aquatics might move its main office from Switzerland to Budapest, Hungary, but this needs to be approved by all members.

Events and Competitions

The main competition venue at the most recent edition of the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan (2023)

World Aquatics Championships

The biggest event World Aquatics organizes is the World Aquatics Championships. This competition happens every two years, usually in odd-numbered years. All six water sports are part of these championships. Swimming races use a 50-meter pool.

The World Open Water Swimming Championships are part of the main World Aquatics Championships. Before 2010, there were also separate Open Water Championships in even-numbered years.

The World Masters Championships are for athletes aged 25 and older (30+ for water polo). These championships include all water sports except high diving. Since 2015, they have been held together with the World Aquatics Championships. Before that, they were separate events every two years.

The World Aquatics Championships used to be held every two to four years. From 2001 to 2019, they happened every two years in odd years. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, some events were delayed or moved. So, from 2022 to 2025, the championships will happen every year. After 2025, they will go back to being held every two years.

Other Competitions

World Aquatics also holds separate events and series for each sport, including competitions for younger athletes.

World Tournaments

Swimming: World Swimming Championships (25m), also called 'Short Course Worlds'. This event happens every two years in even years and uses a 25-meter pool.
Water polo: Men's and Women's Water Polo World Cup. These have replaced the older Water Polo World Leagues.
Diving: Diving World Cup. This competition happens every two years.
High diving: High Diving World Cup. This event happens every year.

World Series Events

Swimming: Swimming World Cup. This happens every year, usually in a 25-meter pool. In years before the Olympics, it uses a 50-meter pool.
Diving: Diving World Series. This is an annual event.
Artistic swimming: Artistic Swimming World Cup. This happens every year (it was called World Series from 2017–2022).
Open water swimming: Marathon Swim World Series. This is an annual event.

Junior Championships

These world-level championships are for younger athletes. The age limit changes depending on the sport and whether it's for boys or girls.

Swimming: World Junior Swimming Championships (every two years).
Water polo: Junior and Youth Water Polo World Championships (every two years).
Diving: World Junior Diving Championships (every two years).
Artistic swimming: World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships (every two years).
Open water swimming: World Junior Open Water Swimming Championships (every two years).

Sport Name Changes

In 2017, FINA officially changed the name of "synchronised swimming" to "Artistic Swimming" for its competitions. This was done to show that the sport is judged not just on how well swimmers move together, but also on their choreography and artistic expression.

Rules and Bans

Bans for Athletes

World Aquatics has rules about athletes who break anti-doping rules. Even if an athlete has stopped competing, they can still be banned. For example, Lithuanian swimmer Rūta Meilutytė was banned from 2019–2021.

Bans for Russia and Belarus

Athletes and officials from Russia and Belarus were not allowed to take part in any FINA (World Aquatics) events until the end of 2022. World Aquatics also canceled events that were supposed to be held in Russia. In March 2022, after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, World Aquatics banned all Russians and Belarusians from competing at the 2022 World Aquatics Championships. They also moved the 2022 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) from Russia.

Before these bans, World Aquatics had already stopped athletes and officials from both countries from wearing their national colors, using their country's name, or having their national anthem played if they won. Also, times swum by Russian athletes in other competitions from April to December 2022 did not count for world rankings or world records. On September 4, 2023, World Aquatics announced new rules. Now, Russian and Belarusian athletes can compete in some events as 'Neutral Independent Athletes', meaning they don't represent their country.