Open Water Olympic Qualifier Relocated To Portugal; Dive Qualifier Rescheduled

The final Olympic qualifying event in open water swimming has been moved from Japan to Portugal, where it was held in 2012 and 2016.

FINA announced the change in a press release today, along with a few other notes on aquatic Olympic qualifiers.

Open Water Swimming

The Marathon Swim Olympic Qualifier was originally set for Fukuoka, Japan on May 29-30. But the event will now return to Setubal, Portugal, and will be nearly a month later, from June 19-20.

Open water Olympic qualifying is based on two major events: the World Championships immediately prior to the Olympics, and the secondary Olympic Qualifier meet.

Open Water Olympic Qualifying

1. Top 10 finishers in the women’s and men’s 10Ks at 2019 Worlds
2. Top 9 finishers in the women’s and men’s events at the Marathon Swim Olympic Qualifier
3. One representative from each FINA continent (Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, Oceania)
4. One representative from the host nation if not already qualified by other means
   1. If the host is already qualified, this final spot gets re-allocated into the Marathon Swim Olympic Qualifier in item #2

Japan does not have a man or a woman yet qualified in open water swimming, so the Olympic Qualifier should be taking the top 9 in both the women’s and men’s races to join the Tokyo Olympic field.

Diving

FINA’s press release also announced that the FINA Diving World Cup (which is a qualifier for the Olympics) will be rescheduled for May 1-6 in Tokyo, Japan. The competition will also serve as the Olympic test event for the Tokyo Olympics.

Artistic Swimming

The Artistic Swimming Olympic Qualification Tournament was originally scheduled for May 1-4 in Tokyo. FINA says it is still “reviewing the staging of this event and a decision will be made in the days to come.”