Kazan and Tatarstan show a special approach to the development of sports and sports culture, which itself is the legacy of hosting international sports competitions, said the new President of the International Swimming Federation Husain Al-Musallam. As part of his official trip, himself and FINA Honorary Life President Julio Maglione visited the Kazan Aquatics Palace and got acquainted with the work of the FINA Development Centre.
“This is my first visit in the FINA President office that I was elected to just 2 days ago, on Saturday. Kazan is a special place for us, which plays an important role in the development of aquatic sports in the world,” said Husain Al-Musallam.
The FINA head also highly assessed the conditions created for the athletes at the Aquatics Palace: “The venue is fantastic! Both from the perspective that excellent conditions have been created here for the competitions and athletes’ trainings, and that children come here to practice, it is open for the residents of Kazan to maintain their health, which is very important”.
Kazan has been successfully cooperating with FINA for a long time. The collaboration started during the preparations for the 2015 FINA World Championships. The city is now getting ready for another World Championships in 2025. In 2022, the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) will be held here.
“This visit confirms our good relationship with the International Swimming Federation. There is the FINA Development Centre operating in Kazan; in 2025, FINA World Championships will be held again. Until this time, we have a clear roadmap for hosting the FINA tournaments. It is clear that the coronavirus pandemic continues, we are forced to cancel some competitions but we hope that the situation will change for the better.
We have already presented our plans for 2025 to the FINA Office. Unlike 2015, we intend to create a sports park, a cluster, and implement a large project to create a multifunctional arena to host swimming competitions there,” Vladimir Leonov shared with the journalists.
“Kazan is undoubtedly ready to host the FINA World Championships, and we have no open questions about it. Time moves on, so new technologies may appear and be applied in some years. That would be great,” Husain Al-Musallam concluded.
As part of his trip to Kazan, today Mr. Al-Musallam also visited the Volga Region University of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism. Meeting with the leadership of the Republic of Tatarstan has been planned for the afternoon.
Reference information
FINA Development Centre in Kazan
On September 22, 2018, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) and Ministry of Sport of the Republic of Tatarstan signed the FINA Development Centre Collaboration Agreement. The centre operates within the framework of organising FINA scholarship and development programmes, intended for the athletes from different continents and regions of the world.
The main goal of the FINA Development Centre is to create the most favorable conditions to unlock the potential of the athletes from countries with minor national achievements in swimming in the most effective way and to provide an opportunity to upgrade their results in the preparation for the World Championships and Olympic Games.
Enhancing the qualifications of coaches and officials from Russia and neighboring countries, conducting educational programmes for them are also among the Centre priorities.
The FINA Development Centre programme consists of the following modules: FINA Scholarships (for athletes only), FINA Clinics (for coaches and officials (judges), FINA Schools (for officials only (judges); FINA Coaches Certification Programme, FINA World Seminars, and other activities.
Currently, the main project within the framework of the FINA Centre international programme is a scholarship programme in swimming and diving, which is being successfully implemented.
Press Office of the ANO “Directorate for Sports and Social Projects”