Otopeni, Romania selected to host World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships in 2025

 

Over 600 promising athletes from more than 100 countries are expected to compete in the premier international event for junior swimmers in Otopeni, Romania, from 19-24 August 2025.

BUDAPEST – World Aquatics announces Otopeni, Romania as the upcoming host of the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships from 19-24 August 2025.

Over 600 promising young swimmers from more than 100 National Federations are expected to compete.

Located beside the Romanian capital Bucharest, Otopeni is emerging as a vibrant hub for sports events, thanks to its modern facilities and commitment to hosting world-class competitions.

Hosting the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships further positions Otopeni as a key destination in the global aquatic sports calendar. The city held the World Aquatics Men’s U20 Water Polo Championships in 2023, and nearby Bucharest will host a World Aquatics Men’s Water Polo World Cup 2025 tournament in January 2025.

The six-day competition will take place at the Aquatics Complex, a facility purpose-built for hosting world-class international swimming events with a 2,400-seating capacity. The venue opened with the European Junior Swimming Championships in 2022 and hosted the European Short Course Swimming Championships in 2023.

Olympic swimming champion Camelia Potec, now President of the Romanian Swimming and Modern Pentathlon Federation and Chair of the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships – Otopeni 2024, hailed the host city selection.

“We are proud and excited that Romania was chosen to organise the World Junior Championships, a prestigious competition that will line up the most talented young swimmers around the world.

“This announcement recognises Romania's efforts to develop the sport and the passion with which we have been involved in promoting swimming,” added Potec. “We thank everyone who contributed to this success—from athletes, coaches, partners, and supporters.

"We are ready to offer an unforgettable show, as happened at the European Short Course Swimming Championships in 2023, and to show the world that Romania can host top-class events!"

The most recent edition of the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships was held in Netanya, Israel, in 2023. At this event, athletes set 12 new World Junior Swimming Championship Records and two World Junior Records.

Among those carving their careers on the global stage who competed at the last edition of the World Junior Swimming Championships are World medallists Eneli Jefimova of Estonia, Lana Pudar of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Milla Jansen of Australia, and Kuzey Tuncelli of Turkey.

Romania’s current swimming superstar, David Popovici, solidified his standing in the sport by winning three golds and a relay silver at the 2022 edition of the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships.

The World Aquatics World Junior Swimming Championships were first held in 2006 in Rio de Janeiro (BRA). Subsequent editions of the biennial event followed in Monterrey (MEX) in 2008; Lima (PER) in 2011; Dubai (UAE) in 2013; Singapore (SGP) in 2015; Indianapolis (USA) in 2017; Budapest (HUN) in 2019; Lima (PER) in 2022, and Netanya (ISR) in 2023.

Editor’s Note: The World Aquatics World Junior Swimming Championships were previously the FINA World Junior Swimming Championships.

Record-setting World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) in Budapest caps an incredible year of aquatics

 

Aquatics’ Finest Hour: Budapest hosts a record-setting end to the 2024 season as athlete set 30 World Records, 13 World Junior Records, 46 Championship Records, and 63 Continental Records at the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) - Budapest 2024.

15 December 2024; BUDAPEST (HUN) – The World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) came to a spectacular close at the Duna Arena after six thrilling days of competition that saw a record 30 World Records fall.

The final races, the Men’s and Women’s 4x100m Medley Relays, delivered a fitting finale. In the women’s relay, Regan Smith of the United States set the tone with a record-breaking backstroke lead-off leg of 54.02. Her teammates Lilly King, Gretchen Walsh, and Kate Douglass carried the momentum, finishing with a World Record of 3:40.41.

In the men’s relay, a quartet of Neutral Athletes—Miron Lifintsev, Kirill Prigoda, Andrei Minakov, and Egor Kornev—followed suit, setting a World Record of 3:18.68.

The USA claimed the Best Team Award with an impressive medal haul of 18 gold, 13 silver, and 8 bronze. Canada ranked second with 4 golds, 5 silvers, and 6 bronzes, followed by Australia with 2 golds, 5 silvers, and 5 bronzes. Overall, 25 countries reached the medal podium, underscoring swimming’s global appeal and competitiveness.

Nine hundred eighty-five athletes from a record 195 countries competed in 45 medal events, showcasing incredible talent over the six days. Among the 30 World Records set, six came in relay events, highlighting the depth of teamwork and competition. The Championships also saw 13 World Junior Records, 46 Championship Records, and 63 Continental Records fall.

The rewriting of the record books started early. During the first-day prelims, Gretchen Walsh of the United States first stormed to an individual World Record of 24.02 in the Women’s 50m Butterfly heats. She ultimately recorded 10 World Records – nine individual and two in relays by Championships’ end.

In addition to America’s Douglas, Smith and Walsh, Summer McIntosh of Canada had outstanding Championships with three golds, a silver and a bronze.  The 18-year-old also set three World Records and five World Junior Records in Budapest. 

Noe Ponti stood out in the men’s field, winning golds in the 50m and 100m Butterfly and the 100m Individual Medley while setting three World Records.

Fittingly, Ponti and Walsh walked away with the Best Male and Best Female swimmer awards of these Championships.

In addition to medals and records, athletes were rewarded with a total prize money purse of US $2.875 million.

All World Records, including the relays, earned US $25,000 for each of their record-setting performances.

Athletes also earned $10,000 for winning a “Double Crown” by going undefeated in an event through the entire World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2024 season and these Championships.

Across the 2024 calendar year, swimmers earned $7.1 million at World Aquatics events, the most in the organisation’s 116-year history.

Over 36 hours of live sports broadcast and six daily highlight programmes produced by host broadcaster Visual Europe Production were distributed in over 150 territories. World Aquatics also provided additional live digital coverage to ensure the event was available in every country.

World Aquatics President Husain Al-Musallam opened the final night of action from the pool by thanking the athletes, organisers and supporters that packed the stands in Budapest.

“We have never seen anything like this before—a World Aquatics Swimming Championships with so many World Records. Day after day, our athletes have set new standards, and it has been a privilege to watch them. I am incredibly proud of the swimmers. After such a demanding year, their ability to deliver so many exceptional performances is truly remarkable.

“I also want to thank the organisers of these World Championships. Your hard work has been a key factor in the athletes’ success,” added World Aquatics President Al-Musallam. “You delivered an outstanding venue that provided everything our swimmers needed to excel, and it’s clear the athletes love competing here.

“We are deeply grateful to our sponsors for their unwavering support. Thank you for being part of this incredible journey.

“Finally, thank you so much for being part of these World Championships. Thank you, Budapest.”

Hungarian Swimming Federation President and event co-chair Sandor Wladar noted the lasting impact of Hungary hosting the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) for the first time.

“We set out to create a championship that would provide a truly unique experience and lasting memories for everyone—whether attending in person or watching the broadcasts worldwide. We imagined, planned, and hoped swimmers, coaches, officials, and fans would embrace our vision.

This success is thanks to this incredible team—a perfect blend of experienced organisers, dedicated professionals, and passionate volunteers—as well as the unwavering support of our partners, with the Hungarian Government leading the way, added Wladar. “Together, we delivered an event that set the highest number of World Records achieved at a World Swimming Championships (25m), drew exceptional attendance, and generated an electrifying atmosphere. This is what people have come to expect from Budapest and the iconic Duna Arena.

“We are deeply grateful to World Aquatics for their trust and partnership. We simply did our best to live up to that trust and serve the sport we all love.”

European Aquatics reveals nominees for 2024 Athlete of the Year Awards – and the public vote is now open

 

European Aquatics is proud to reveal the nominees for the 2024 Athlete of the Year Awards, all of whom have distinguished themselves in an extraordinary year of competition highlighted by the Paris Olympics.

The Awards will celebrate male and female competitors across the whole range of European Aquatics activities - swimming, open water swimming, diving, high diving, artistic swimming and water polo.

Each category will feature five nominees, showcasing the depth of talent within aquatics disciplines across the continent.

And you, the followers of Europe’s aquatics athletes, now have the chance to vote ahead of the competition deadline of 23:59 CET on December 31.

You can find the lists of nominees here. https://www.len.eu/awards-2024/

To cast your vote please select the image of the athlete you wish to support – you will have one vote per discipline in each category.

The 12 winners are set to be revealed in January, on European Aquatics website and social media channels .

Nominees were chosen based on their performances during the 2024 season, which included the World Aquatics Championships in Doha and the European Aquatics Championships in Belgrade as well as the Paris 2024 Games. These shortlists were approved by the Technical Committee of each discipline.

The public vote will count for 30% of the total voting, with 70% weighting for the European Aquatics members and technical committee voting.

European fans – dive in! Start voting now!

SWISS AQUATICS Ponti schwimmt Fabelweltrekord in Budapest

 

photo by patrick b. krämer

Noè Ponti gewinnt an den Kurzbahn-Weltmeisterschaften in Budapest über 100 Meter Schmetterling seinen dritten WM-Titel – wie schon über die halbe Distanz mit Weltrekord. Der Tessiner Überflieger verbesserte die Marke des Amerikaners Caeleb Dressel aus dem Jahr 2020 um sieben Hundertstelsekunden auf 47.71 Sekunden.

Unfassbar, unglaublich, ohne Worte! Das waren die Reaktionen der Medienschaffenden in der Duna Arena in Budapest. Was dieser 23-Jährige vom Schwimmclub Uster hier leistet, bringt selbst hartgesottene Schwimmjournalistinnen und -journalisten ins Schwärmen.

Noè Ponti ist neben der Amerikanerin Gretchen Walsh der grosse Star dieser Meisterschaften. Insgesamt dreimal verbesserte er in der ungarischen Hauptstadt einen Weltrekord – zweimal über 50 Meter Schmetterling und heute über die doppelte Distanz.

«Ich habe gehofft, dass ich so schnell schwimmen würde, es war sensationell, einfach crazy! Ich habe einfach mein Rennen gemacht, war nicht nervös – am Ende war es ziemlich gut», schmunzelt er in die Kamera von Swiss Aquatics. Gestern noch auf einen möglichen Weltrekord über diese Distanz angesprochen, hatte er vehement verneint, an diese Marke zu denken. Zu weit weg sei dieser Rekord für ihn. Weit gefehlt! Ponti verbesserte seinen Europarekord von 48.40 Sekunden um sagenhafte 0.69 Sekunden. Auf die Frage, ob er gestern tiefgestapelt habe, antwortet er mit einem breiten Grinsen: «Ich sage nie, was ich machen will, ich lasse lieber meine Rennen sprechen.» Das hat er, dieser sympathische junge Mann, der die Schwimmwelt in Ekstase versetzt und der Schweiz einen dreifachen Weltmeister im Schwimmen beschert hat.

Noè Ponti wird morgen die Lagenstaffel schwimmen, danach «richtig Party» machen und am Montag mit dem Team um 16.35 Uhr in Kloten landen. Dort wird ihm Swiss Aquatics am Flughafen einen gebührenden Empfang bereiten.

 

Marius Toscan: «Mit der zweiten Hälfte zufrieden»

Am Morgen stand Marius Toscan in seiner Paradedisziplin über 400 Meter Lagen am Start.  In 4:10.39 blieb er rund 1.2 Sekunden über seiner Bestleistung, die er im November in Sursee realisiert hatte. Als 18. verpasste der EM-Fünfte von 2024 den Final der besten acht deutlich. «Mit der zweiten Hälfte bin ich ganz zufrieden. Nach dem Start war der Übergang von der Unterwasserphase ins Schwimmen jedoch nicht optimal. Das hat diverse Zehntel und zu viel Energie gekostet, um an meine Bestzeit anzuknüpfen.»

Der 22-Jährige vom Schwimmverein St. Gallen-Wittenbach trainiert seit Sommer zusammen mit Noè Ponti im Nationalen Trainingszentrum von Swiss Aquatics in Tenero unter den Fittichen von Massimo Meloni und Andrea Mercuri. «Ich habe mich gut eingelebt im Tessin. Der Aufbau des Trainings ist leicht anders. Wir schwimmen weniger Kilometer, dafür mit mehr Intensität. Und es ist gut, dass ich dort nun auf der 50-Meter-Bahn trainieren kann.» Es sei auch cool, mit Italienisch eine neue Sprache lernen zu können, beschreibt der gelernte Polymechaniker sein neues Umfeld.

 

Louis Droupy mit vielen neuen Eindrücken

Der Westschweizer Brustspezialist Louis Droupy kehrt mit vielen neuen Eindrücken in seine Heimat nach Morges zurück. Zum ersten Mal an einer WM dabei, musste er sich zuerst «an die vielen neuen Eindrücke und Abläufe gewöhnen».

Auf der kürzesten Brustdistanz, den 50 Metern, blieb er in 27.25 Sekunden knapp eine halbe Sekunde über seiner Bestleistung. «Ich denke, ich habe nicht viele Fehler gemacht. Mein Start ins Rennen war jedoch nicht der beste. Die Zeit über 50 Meter war eine logische Folge der vorherigen Rennen. Über 200 Meter war ich zwei Sekunden über der Bestzeit, über 100 Meter eine, nun eine halbe -  das ist zurzeit einfach die Form, die ich habe.»

Der 23-jährige Schwimmer von Lausanne Aquatique nimmt sehr viele neue Eindrücke mit nach Hause. «Unvergesslich sind sicher diese unglaublichen Momente, die uns Noè beschert hat. Diese werde ich nie vergessen.» Morgen Sonntag wird er zum Abschluss dieser Weltmeisterschaften in der 4x100m Lagenstaffel starten. «Ich freue mich riesig mit Roman Mityukov, Thierry Bollin und Noè Ponti diese Staffel schwimmen zu können. Das wird toll!» Der Vorlauf der Staffel ist morgen Sonntag auf 10.47 Uhr angesetzt.

Die morgigen Einsätze des Schweizer Teams sehen wie folgt aus:

Antonio Djakovic

200m Freistil: Heats, 9:38 Uhr (evtl. Final ab 18:40 Uhr)

Roman Mityukov

200m Rücken: Heats, 10:12 Uhr (evtl. Final ab 18:12 Uhr)

Staffel

4x100m Lagen: Heats, 10:47 Uhr (evtl. Final ab 19:10 Uhr)

SWISS AQUATICS Noè Ponti établit un record du monde fabuleux à Budapest

 

Noè Ponti remporte son troisième titre mondial sur 100 mètres papillon aux Championnats du monde en petit bassin à Budapest, comme il l'avait déjà fait sur la mi-distance en battant le record du monde. Le surdoué tessinois a amélioré de sept centièmes de seconde la marque de l'Américain Caeleb Dressel, datant de 2020, pour toucher en 47,71 secondes.

Incroyable, inimaginable, sans mots ! Telles ont été les réactions des journalistes dans la Duna Arena de Budapest. Ce que ce jeune Suisse de 23 ans réalise ici fait rêver même les journalistes de natation les plus chevronnés.

Noè Ponti est, avec l'Américaine Gretchen Walsh, la grande star de ces championnats. Au total, il a amélioré trois fois un record du monde dans la capitale hongroise - deux fois sur 50 mètres papillon et aujourd'hui sur la double distance.

« J'espérais nager aussi vite, c'était sensationnel, tout simplement fou ! J'ai simplement fait ma course, je n'étais pas nerveux - à la fin, c'était plutôt bien », sourit-il devant la caméra de Swiss Aquatics. Interrogé hier encore sur un éventuel record du monde sur cette distance, il avait nié avec véhémence penser à cette marque. Ce record est trop loin pour lui. Pas du tout ! Ponti a amélioré son record d'Europe de 48,40 secondes de 0,69 seconde. Quand on lui demande s'il a minimisé ses possibilités hier, il répond avec un grand sourire : « Je ne dis jamais ce que je veux faire, je préfère laisser parler mes courses ». Il l'a fait, ce jeune homme sympathique qui a mis le monde de la natation en extase et a offert à la Suisse un triple champion du monde de natation.

Noè Ponti nagera demain le relais 4-nages, fera ensuite « bien la fête » et atterrira lundi avec son équipe à 16h35 à Kloten où Swiss Aquatics lui réservera un accueil digne de ce nom à l'aéroport.

Marius Toscan : « Satisfait de la deuxième moitié »

Le matin, Marius Toscan était au départ du 400 mètres 4-nages, sa discipline de prédilection. Avec un temps de 4:10,39, il est resté environ 1,2 seconde au-dessus de sa meilleure performance, réalisée en novembre à Sursee. En tant que 18e, le cinquième des Championnats d'Europe de 2024 a nettement manqué la finale des huit meilleurs. « Je suis assez satisfait de la deuxième moitié. Après le départ, la transition entre la phase subaquatique et la natation n'était toutefois pas optimale. Cela m'a coûté divers dixièmes et trop d'énergie pour pouvoir renouer avec mon meilleur temps ».

Le nageur de 22 ans du Schwimmverein St. Gallen-Wittenbach s'entraîne depuis cet été avec Noè Ponti au centre national d'entraînement de Swiss Aquatics à Tenero, sous l'aile de Massimo Meloni et Andrea Mercuri. « Je me suis bien adapté au Tessin. La structure de l'entraînement est légèrement différente. Nous nous entraînons moins, mais de manière plus intensive. Et c'est bien que je puisse maintenant m'y entraîner en bassin de 50 mètres ». Le polymécanicien de formation apprécie également beaucoup de pouvoir apprendre une nouvelle langue avec l'italien.

Louis Droupy avec beaucoup de nouvelles expériences

Le spécialiste romand de la brasse Louis Droupy rentre chez lui à Morges avec beaucoup de nouvelles expériences. Participant pour la première fois à un championnat du monde, il a d'abord dû « s'habituer aux nombreuses nouvelles impressions et procédures ».

Sur la distance de brasse la plus courte, le 50 mètres, il a réalisé 27,25 secondes, soit une demi-seconde de plus que son record. » Je pense que je n'ai pas commis beaucoup d'erreurs. Mon début de course n'était cependant pas le meilleur. Le temps sur 50 mètres était une conséquence logique des courses précédentes. Sur 200 mètres, j'étais deux secondes au-dessus de mon meilleur temps, sur 100 mètres une, maintenant une demi-seconde - c'est simplement la forme que j'ai en ce moment ».

Le nageur de 23 ans de Lausanne Aquatique repart avec de très nombreuses nouvelles expériences. « Ce qui est inoubliable, ce sont certainement ces moments incroyables que Noè nous a fait vivre. Je ne les oublierai jamais ». Demain dimanche, il conclura ces championnats du monde en participant au relais 4 x 100 mètres 4-nages. « Je me réjouis énormément de pouvoir nager ce relais avec Roman Mityukov, Thierry Bollin et Noè Ponti. Ça va être génial ! » Les séries du relais sont prévues demain dimanche à 10h47.

Les engagements de demain de l'équipe suisse se présentent comme suit:

Antonio Djakovic

200m nage libre : Séries, 9h38  (évtl. finale à partir de 18h42)

Roman Mityukov

200m dos : Séries, 10h12 (évtl. finale à partir de 18h12)

Staffel

4x100m 4 nages: Séries, 10h47 (évtl. finale à partir de 19h10)

Walshe and Corby Continue Ireland Record Breaking Streak; Walshe Through to Another Semi-Final

 

Irish swimmers assault on the record books continued in Budapest on Friday morning with two more records coming from Ellen Walshe in the 100m Butterfly and Eoin Corby in the 200m Breaststroke, making it nine Irish Senior Records and one Irish Junior Record across four days.

Walshe, who has already set six new Irish Records in the 100m and 200m Individual Medley and 50m Butterfly this week, continued her form with a new standard in the fastest ever 100m Butterfly (SC) race in history as the USA’s Gretchen Walsh set a new World Record of 53.24. The Templeogue swimmers time of 56.17 saw her second to Walsh and through to the semi-final in fifth place overall.

The 23-year-old’s previous record stood at 56.67 from 2023.

Speaking after the race Walshe said ‘It’s amazing to be part of a heat like that, the girls are so talented, and it will be a great semi tonight and maybe a final tomorrow. I’m hurting today, my legs are pretty sore, but I’ve just got to tidy up the small things and hopefully there’s a little bit more tonight, maybe a 55, who knows.’

National Centre Limerick’s Eoin Corby set his first Irish Senior Record in the heats of the 200m Breaststroke. Corby touched in 2:06.45 erasing Uiseann Cooke’s 2021 record of 2:06.81. The 22-year-old was sixth in his heat.

Commenting after the race Corby said ‘I’m very happy, funnily enough I felt kind of weird in the warm-up and I just kind of put that aside. I knew I was training well coming into the competition so I just kind of focused on that, took that into the race and tried to race some of the lads beside me and I got the Irish Senior Record so I’m very happy with that.

Also, in action this morning, Ellie McCartney swam her second-best time in the 200m Breaststroke clocking 2:23.26. The National Centre Limerick swimmer, competing at her first senior World Championships, was sixth in her heat, her only event this week

‘I mean I’m satisfied with it; I came here to race against the best in the World, I had one swim, I had one chance, and I think I somewhat took advantage of it. I know from last week (2:21.21 at Scottish Nationals), I can go two seconds faster, but I need to be under that in the heats next time and that’s something I need to learn to do.’

On Friday evening, Ellen Walshe will be joined in action by Shane Ryan who swims the Final of the 50m Backstroke having qualified eighth in 22.89 after Thursday’s semi-finals.

Day 4 Heats Results – Friday 13th December

Female 200m Breaststroke

Ellie McCartney

2:23.36 (17th)

Male 200m Breaststroke

Eoin Corby

2:06.45 (17th) ISR

Female 100m Butterfly

Ellen Walshe

56.17 (5th) ISR

Day 4 Heats Schedule – Friday 13th December

Male 50m Backstroke Final

Shane Ryan

17.12 IRL

Female 100m Butterfly

Ellen Walshe

17.20 IRL

Meet Information

Dates: 10th – 15th December 2024

Times: Heats 8am / Finals 4.30pm (Ireland)

Schedule: Competition Schedule | World Aquatics Official

Results: All World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) Results By OMEGA

Live Stream: Eurovision Sport | Aquatics

CHAMPIONNATS INDIVIDUELS 2024 DU SENEGAL, Dimanche 15 décembre à la Piscine camp militaire de bel air à Dakar

 

La Fédération Sénégalaise de Natation et de Sauvetage (FSNS) organise en un Week-end: Dimanche 15 Décembre 2024 (Matin à 10H et Après-midi à 15h) Les CHAMPIONNATS INDIVIDUELS 2024 DU SÉNÉGAL. LE PUBLIC EST CORDIALEMENT INVITÉ AUX CHAMPIONNATS INDIVIDUELS 2024 DU SÉNÉGAL.

LE PROGRAMME des CHAMPIONNATS EM UM WEEK-END: ORDRE DES ÉPREUVES

Dimanche 15 décembre 2024, MATIN à 10h 00 mn

1 100 m Dos Dames

2 200 m Dos Messieurs

3 100 m Brasse Dames

4 100 m Brasse Messieurs

5 100 m Nage Libre Dames

6 100 m Nage Libre Messieurs

7200m 4 Nages Dames

8 200m 4 Nages Messieurs

9 Relais 4x100 4 Nages Dames

10 Relais 4x100 4 Nages Messieurs

Dimanche 15 décembre 2024, APRÈS-MIDI à 15h 00 mn

11 200 m Nage Libre Messieurs

12 200 m Nage Libre Dames

13 100 m Papillon Messieurs

14 100 m Papillon Dames

15 100 m Dos Messieurs

16 200 m Dos Dames

17 50 m Nage Libre Messieurs

18 50 m Nage Libre Dames

19 Relais 4x100 Nage Libre Messieurs

20 Relais 4x100 Nage Libre Dames