Swimming Australia has today confirmed the event dates for its national competition schedule leading into the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics next year, with the domestic calendar set to play a vital role in the athletes’ preparation.
The four major national meets organised in the first half of 2021 feature crucial selection process qualifiers for the Games as well as key benchmark events for age swimmers.
Essentially mirroring timelines from 2020, the year will kick off with the:
- Australian Open Water Swimming Championships (January 29-31);
- Hancock Prospecting Australian Age Swimming Championships (April 5-12) and the;
- Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Championships (April 14-18).
Two months later the Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Trials will be held from June 12-17 in Adelaide, marking the pinnacle domestic competition for the year that will see athletes qualify for Tokyo.
While the calendar dates have been confirmed, details surrounding locations and venues are still being worked through by key stakeholders.
In a point of difference to recent program schedules, finals will be swum in the morning and heats in the evening during the Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Championships, replicating and preparing the athletes for what they will experience in Tokyo.
Meanwhile, the country’s open multi-class swimmers will compete for national titles at the beginning of the Hancock Prospecting Australian Age Champs, effectively marking the start of the competition on 5 April.
Swimming Australia High Performance Chief Strategist Alex Baumann said the domestic racing calendar will be vitally important heading into Tokyo next year.
Swimming Australia High Performance Chief Strategist Alex Baumann
Baumann said in a Swimming Australia press release: “With the prospect of international racing still up in the air leading into Tokyo, we’ve been working really closely with our state and territory associations to make sure the complete domestic calendar provides plenty of strong, quality race practice for our athletes.
“The preparation our athletes will now experience due to the challenges they’ve all faced with COVID-19 will be vastly different to their original plans, so it was imperative that we provide them with the best possible platform to reboot and adapt as they strive to achieve their goals.
“One of those measures was scheduling finals in the morning and heats at night during the Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Champs in April to replicate the program our athletes will encounter at the Olympics. It’s going to assist in their preparation and allow them to experience the change in race scheduling just a few months out from Tokyo.”
In addition to the schedule for 2021, Baumann confirmed that the first national racing opportunity post COVID-19 would be the Hancock Prospecting Australian Short Course Swimming Championships from 26-29 November in Melbourne this year.
“Although this will no longer be a selection event for World Short Course, it will provide our athletes with solid first hit out of racing since they have been back in the training pool,” he said.
“We have made the decision to extend the meet by one extra day to allow for B finals as we look to provide our athletes with more racing opportunities.”
Swimming Australia Chief Commercial Operations Sam Eustice said he was thrilled to be returning to Adelaide for our benchmark event in 2021.
“We would like to thank South Australian Tourism Commission and the South Australian Government for their ongoing support of our sport, and we have no doubt Adelaide will host another fantastic event,” he said.
Premier Steven Marshall said the confirmation that the trials would return to Adelaide was a significant boost for the state’s post COVID-19 recovery plans.
“It is terrific to see that we are returning to hosting events and that sporting competitions can start to plan ahead for next year. It is excellent that Australia’s leading swimmers will be in Adelaide to prepare for Tokyo 2021,” he said.
“Although we’re still working towards locking in venues for some of our events – which is a complex piece of work involving many stakeholders – we thought it was important to release the dates for planning purposes.
“We know everyone will be eager to know all of the locations, so as soon as these are confirmed we will be sure to communicate this with the swimming community.”
Swimming Australia 2021 Calendar:
Hancock Prospecting Australian Short Course Swimming Championships, Melbourne: 26-29 November 2020
Australian Open Water Swimming Championships: 29-31 January 2021
This will form part of the men’s nomination process for Tokyo.
Hancock Prospecting Australian Age Swimming Championships: 5-12 April 2021
This will form part of the selection process for the international junior benchmark events for 2021.
Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Championships: 14-18 April 2021
This will form part of the selection process for the international junior benchmark events for 2021.
Hancock Prospecting Australian Swimming Trials, Adelaide: 12-17 June 2021
Athletes will be nominated to the Australian team to compete at the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games.
For more information on the program of events and qualifying times, visit Swimming Australia’s events page. Please note these dates are subject to change.
State Swimming Associations will announce their local competition calendars as they are confirmed. Please check their websites for up-to-date information.
