World Aquatics Championships: Singapore hopes event can help inspire next Schooling
The championships are being hosted in Southeast Asia for the first time and officials want it to leave a lasting legacy
Singapore swimming chiefs hope hosting the World Aquatics Championships this month will provide a lasting legacy for the city, and maybe even help unearth the next Joseph Schooling.
The city state’s only Olympic gold medallist, Schooling also has two bronze medals at the championships to his name, but will be missing this time around, having retired from competitive swimming last year at the age of 28.
In his absence, local attention will turn to the likes of the Quah siblings - Olympians Quah Ting Wen, Quah Jing Wen and Quah Zheng Wen - artistic swimmer Debbie Soh Li Fei, and national record holder Gan Ching Hwee, plus the more than 2,500 elite athletes from over 200 countries expected to descend on Singapore for the championships, which run from Friday until August 3.
It is the first time the championships have been staged in Southeast Asia, and Singapore has had just 18 months to get ready after Kazan was stripped of hosting the event following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Organisers said they expect 40,000 visitors, including athletes, families and coaches to flock to the city, generating US$47 million in tourism receipts.
A record prize money pool of more than US$6 million with an additional US$30,000 swimming world record bonus is also up for grabs.