DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, December 14. DURING the FINA Bureau meeting held this weekend in Dubai shortly before the FINA World Short Course Championships, the Bureau awarded a pair of swimming championships to two hosts.
After a moment of silence to memorialize Fran Crippen's passing at the Fujairah, UAE stop of the FINA Marathon Swimming World Cup, FINA decided to give the 2014 World Short Course Championships to Catania, Italy. Meanwhile, FINA chose Casablanca, Morocco as the host of the 2013 World Junior Swimming Championships.
In other news, FINA created a "School for Officials" in open water, similar to the schools already created in water polo, diving and synchronized swimming, to help filter who is chosen to be an official in the sport of open water.
FINA also awarded the 2012 Men's Water Polo Olympic Games Qualification Tournament to Edmonton, Canada, while giving the women's tournament to a city to be named later in Italy. Setubal, Portugal will host the 2012 Open Water Olympic Qualification Event.
In other news, Kenya's Ben Ekumbo was elected to the Bureau to represent Africa, while Hungary's Gergely Csurka was nominated to the FINA Press Commission.
