Building New Ways for Success in Aquatic Sports
FINA’s main objective is to promote and encourage the development of Swimming in all possible manifestations throughout the world and it is by keeping this in mind that the Federation has for more than a decade put in place a whole variety of programmes that help sustain such aspiration. The underlying idea is that by providing educational programmes for coaches, judges, managers and referees, less-favoured nations will be able to develop and organise their aquatic sports in a more efficient and effective way.
To this day, FINA has created Schools for Water Polo referees, Diving and Synchronised Swimming judges, swimming officials and coaches and managers in all disciplines. To illustrate such success, between 2005 and 2008, 117 Schools for Swimming, 30 for Synchronised Swimming, 42 for Water Polo, 19 for Diving and 22 for Open Water Swimming were organised. 48 took place in Africa, 94 in the Americas, 52 in Asia, 10 in Europe and 26 in Oceania.
FINA Swimming Officials Schools inaugurated in the Bahamas - February 2011
Meeting in Shanghai (CHN) in 2006, the Coaches Commission presented the Bureau with a proposal to update the education programmes with qualification standards. From then on, FINA Education Programme Clinics would be carried out in three levels: Basic Introductory Coaching (Novice Level), Age Group Coaching (Intermediate Level), and Senior International Level (Advanced Level).
Another prominent aspect of FINA’s development policy is its Olympic Solidarity Programme, founded in 1961, which provides assistance to National Olympic Committees, especially those lacking the necessary resources to develop their aquatic sports. Its world programmes hinge on four fields of action: athletes, coaches, National Olympic Committee management, and promotion of the Olympic values. As for its continental programmes, they take into consideration the socio-economic and cultural environment in order to adapt with the region’s specific needs.