FINA (Fédération Internationale de Natation Amateur) has confirmed that it will not extend the age eligibility for athletes to participate in the 2022 World Junior Championships. The gala event has been one of several major swimming competitions affected by a postponement. But the organising body, FINA, has not moved the age ranges.
Postponement doesn’t give extended eligibility
The World Junior Championships were scheduled for 2021 but were pushed back to August 2022. The postponement of tournaments has produced some complications about who is eligible.
By not extending parameters, it means that swimmers eligible to participate in the World Junior Championship, had they been held on the original date, won’t be granted a pass to compete in the newly-scheduled event if they fall outside the age bracket.
The selections for athletes at the World Junior Championships stays at:
• Girls: 14 – 17 years on 31 December 2022 (born 2008, 2007, 2006, & 2005)
• Boys: 15 – 18 years on 31 December 2022 (born 2007, 2006, 2005, & 2004)
Countries plan for the new date
If this year’s event happens as scheduled, it will be the 8th World Junior Championships since its inaugural edition in 2006. FINA is still juggling with the 2022 calendar year because of postponements of other events. But it has stated that the World Junior Championships is unlikely to be adjusted again.
Some countries, such as Great Britain, had already expected FINA to make no adjustments to the age qualification for the postponed World Junior Championships and had adjusted their national selection process to accommodate that.
What the lockouts mean
The World Junior Championships have been hosted on odd-years, which generally allows swimmers to compete at a maximum of two of them. But now, because of the date adjustment, some have been locked out of that second World Junior Championships appearance.
In some instances, it will affect gold medal defences, such as women’s 200 Individual Medley champion, Evgenia Chikunova, who now falls outside the age range.
Croatia’s Franko Grgic won the 800 and 1500 free in the 2019 World Junior Championships but was born in 2003 and therefore cannot make that second appearance. Neither can Bulgaria’s Josif Malidinov in the 50m fly. He could have defended his gold in the event had the competition gone ahead last year but will now have to pass.
FISU take a lenient approach for World University Games
With FINA staying firm on their age ranges, it does put a different complexion on the gala when it starts later this year. The organising body didn’t explain their reason for keeping things the same and not extending eligibility.
The FISU (The Fédération Internationale du Sport Universitaire), organisation of the World University Games, has taken a different view with their competition. The latest World University Games will be open to any athlete eligible through age and student status on the original dates of the competition.
The World University games, having been postponed twice from the original 2021 date, will now go ahead in June 2022. The event stays at the scheduled host city of Chengdu, China, before going to Yekaterinburg, Russia, in 2023 for the next edition.
