World Aquatics Scholarship Program Accepting Applications
World Aquatics has opened its application process for the World Aquatics Scholarship Program, it announced on Tuesday.
This is the 10th season for the program, begun in 2014 by FINA (now World Aquatics). It offers scholarships for swimmers for a one-year program beginning in September 2023 that, “puts them in an environment to help them reach their full aquatics potential,” per a press release. The deadline to apply is May 25.
For the 2023 batch of recipients of the World Aquatics Scholarship Program, the organization is targeting to reach 100 swimmers, 20 open-water swimmers, 20 divers and 10 artistic swimming duets. (Links direct you to the relevant application for each discipline.)
The body, “takes into consideration continent quotas and gender equality” for each class. Selected candidates will be placed at one of the five World Aquatics Training Centers for one or two years, with rare special dispensation to fund individual training.
The program is targeted at promising young swimmers in regions of the world that are traditionally under-resourced for swimming, with the goal of helping those swimmers reach other secondary institutions and compete internationally at a high level, including in the Olympics and at World Championships. The program is part of World Aquatics’ outreach strategy, which it sees as, “a crucial development programme aimed at furthering the progress of national teams globally.”
From the press release:
The main goal of the World Aquatics Scholarships Programme is to identify and create an optimal training environment for athletes aspiring to represent their countries at the next World Aquatics Championships and the Olympic Games. The programme aims to support athletes with greater needs and help them reach their full potential.
“My greatest pleasure as World Aquatics President comes in spending time with our athletes,” World Aquatics president Husain Al-Musallam said. “Travelling to competitions and training centres and meeting with our scholarship holders only strengthens our commitment to offering opportunities like this to our athletes. Scholarship athletes benefit from elite coaching, while also having the ability to continue their academic studies at the same time. In 2023, we are offering more scholarships than ever before. I encourage any interested athlete to apply.”
Appreciate the scholarship offered 🙏