The United States will look to underline their place as the most successful team in the history of the World Aquatics Championship when the competition makes its way to Gwangju in South Korea in July.
More than 2,000 athletes will compete in the world’s premier aquatics showcase this summer, featuring more than 70 events.
The Americans have failed to win only four of the 17 World Aquatics Championships held to date, with East Germany (1986), Australia (2001) and China (1994, 2015) the the only other nations who have managed to take the biennial crown.
Preview and Favourites
The United States reclaimed the World Championships title in Budapest in 2017 after China interrupted their six-championship streak of finishing top of the medal table (2003-2013).
The men’s 5,000-metre open water event will be the first of the tournament to hand out a gold medal. Frenchman Marc-Antoine Olivier will be only 23 years of age when he seeks to defend his title, having also won bronze in the 10-kilometre open water race two years ago.
He could be one of those vying to add to his medal collection after clinching bronze in the team open water event at the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow last year. However, no man has successfully defended his win in this event since Germany’s Thomas Lurz in 2009-11.
Croatia’s men were water polo runners-up in 2015 and climbed the podium places in successive years to take their second world championship. They, alongside Hungary and Serbia, would be the best bets to be contending for the gold medal—or at least a place in the top three.
Schedule
The 2019 World Aquatics Championships will take place between Friday, July 12th until Sunday, July 28.
There will be a shake-up to the timing of events due to the competition moving to South Korea, however, and viewing times won’t be as hospitable this year as they were to European audiences in 2017. This year, morning sessions will begin at 10 a.m. local time (1 a.m. GMT), and afternoon sessions will begin at 8 p.m. local time (11 a.m. GMT). You can check out the competition’s official provisional programme at SwimSwam.com to see the schedule outline.
World Aquatics Championships Betting Odds
You can bet on the 2019 World Aquatics Championships at William Hill, BetAmerica, Ladbrokes, Betfair. Odds are prior to the event and can be checked at odds betting sites like Oddschecker.
Where to Get Tickets
Tickets for the 2019 World Aquatics Championships can be purchased via the official Gwangju 2019 website. Ticketmaster.com will also provide search options to purchase tickets when they become available.
Information
The Gwangju 2019 organisers confirmed in May 2018 that the otter had been chosen as the official mascot for the competition, in accordance with its slogan “Dive Into Peace.”
A statement on the decision read: “The mascot of the 2019 Gwangju FINA World Championships is the otter, a flagship species of Mt. Mudeungsan that has returned to the Yeongsangang River of Gwangju. The otter swimming freely in the water symbolizes the swimmers’ passion for challenge and promotes the “spirits of peace” to the citizens of the world enjoying the harmonious festival.”
