New Zealand will host 13 regional events this summer and fall to allow everyone from age groupers to adults to return to competition after the pandemic.
Swimming New Zealand announced the 2020 NZ Short Course Series on its website. The series will take place in short course meters, with 13 regional events combining results to create a top 20 list for each age group. A few of the events are already scheduled for later this month, but some won’t take place until late September.
Here’s a look at the events listed on the Swimming New Zealand website right now:
- Taranaki – July 17-19
- Nelson Marlborough – July 24-26
- Waikato – July 25-26
- Hawke’s Bay Poverty Bay – Aug. 7-16
- South Island – Sept. 4-6
- Bay of Plenty – Sept. 4-6
- Counties Manukau – Sept. 5
- Canterbury West Coast – Sept. 11-12
- Manawatu – Sept. 12-13
- Southland – Sept. 13
- Wellington – Sept. 18-20
- Auckland – Sept. 18-20
- Otago – Sept. 19
The meets will feature combined top 20 lists in the following categories (with a top 10 list for swims in the open category):
- 11 years old
- 12 years old
- 13 years old
- 14 years old
- 15 years old
- 16 years old
- 17-18 years old
- 19+ years old
- Open (all age groups)
New Zealand has been one of the nations hit least hard by the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. According to the World Health Organization, the small island nation of New Zealand had only about 1,184 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with just 22 deaths. New Zealand has a relatively small population, but even relative to population, New Zealand has had a small number of cases: about 245 per 1 million population, compared to 8,560 per 1 million population in the United States.
New Zealand hasn’t logged more than 4 new COVID-19 cases in a single day since mid-April. The nation is beginning to return to normal, and many pools and training groups have been open since May.
