FINA and the upcoming host city Hangzhou, China, celebrated the 200 days to go mark on Friday May 25 as the Organising gears up with preparations.

The city of Hangzhou celebrated the milestone with an official ceremony to introduce the event and the key actors from the city’s authorises. Dances and choreographies showcasing the element of water and symbolising the youth and physical activities were performed on stage, while the official three countdowns dispatched across the city were revealed at the end of the ceremony. The clocks respectively located in the Urban Balcony, Xihu Hubin, and the West Lake Cultural Plaza all started simultaneously.

Hangzhou a city of water

Surrounded by the West Lake and on the banks of the Yangtze River, Hangzhou is naturally linked with water. The Organising Committee decided to illustrate the various designs of the Championships with water elements such as a drop and the lotus flower. Combined with the urban style of Hangzhou, the “water drop" element is used as the main visual element.

Competition venue

The competition venue of the FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) will

be the 10.000 seat Tennis Centre at the spectacular Hangzhou Olympic and International Expo Center. A temporary competition pool and pool deck will be constructed on top of the main arena of the Tennis Centre.

The warm up and training pool will be located in a temporary constructed building attached to the Competition venue. The facilities will include sufficient space for athlete preparation and team areas.

The Hangzhou Olympic and International Expo Center is only 15-20 minutes’ drive time from most of the official hotels.

The 14th FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) will be held from December 11 - 16, 2018 and will be preceded by the 5th FINA World Aquatics Convention, a top- top-notch gathering for the leaders of the wider Aquatics Family looking to share best practice and knowledge within the community.

Over 900 athletes are expected to attend, representing around 150 nations. The registration will shortly open and teams will have until October 31 to enter their favourite events.

The competition schedule is planned as follows:

SCHEDULE

The FINA Best Athletes of the 2018 will also be honoured on the occasion of the FINA World Aquatics Gala.

The Hangzhou Organising Committee launched the official website, available in Chinese and English.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

The FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) were first held in Palma de Mallorca in Spain in 1993 and since then have taken place all over the world, including Rio de Janeiro and Shanghai, every even year – apart from 1999 and 2000 when they took place two years in a row.

Some of the biggest names in swimming such as Michael Phelps (USA), Australia’s Ian Thorpe, Jenny Thompson (USA) and Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry have taken part in these Championships during their brilliant career.