The 2016 Raia Rápida, the 5th edition of the made-for-TV event, will be hosted on September 24th in the Olympic Aquatics Centre before it is deconstructed and used to build two smaller facilities.
And now the event has its first full lineup.
Brazil, the home team, has announced its roster of four sprinters:
- Guilherme Guido (backstroke)
- Joao Gomes Junior (breaststroke)
- Henrique Martins (butterfly)
- Bruno Fratus (freestyle).
Fratus, who ended last season as the second-fastest 50 freestyler in the world despite only finishing 6th in the event at the Olympics, will captain the squad.
The format will be similar to last year, where each swimmer will swim a 50 of their respective stroke, finished with a 200 medley relay. Swimmers will accumulate points for the results of each event, and a pool of 100,000 Brazilian Reais (approximately $30,000 USD) will be divided among the teams based on order of overall finish.
Brazil are the defending champions of the event, which will once again draw teams from South Africa, Italy, and the United States. Only Santos, who won the 50 fly last year, will return for this year’s competition for the home team.
