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List of swimming pools

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of notable swimming pools, especially full long course 50 by 25 metres (164 ft × 82 ft) ones suited for Olympic competitions (with 10 lanes, just 8 used, and 2m or more deep). This also includes current and past pools with historical or architectural importance. It is not intended to include hot springs pools except where actual swimming, as opposed to bathing or wading, is possible.

Organized swimming as a competitive sport seems to have emerged in England in the 1830s, after the first indoor swimming pool of some type, at St. George's Baths, was opened in 1828. Swimming was included in the first Olympics of modern times, in Athens in 1896, with competition held in the Bay of Zea at Piraeus, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the stadium where many events were held. In the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, swimming was in the Seine. The 1904 Summer Olympics, the only Olympic games where the yard was the measure for setting racing distances, was held at a lake in Forest Park, in St. Louis, Missouri. The first Olympic swimming pool was used in the 1908 Summer Olympics, in London, outdoors in the infield of White City Stadium (demolished in 1985).

In modern times, an Olympic pool may be used for a competition, and then moved to be used elsewhere. This what happened with pools at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium and the Maria Lenk Aquatic Center of the 2016 Summer Olympics: these were transformed into four 50 meter pools in Manaus (4000 km west of Rio), Salvador de Bahia (1600 km north), Guarantiguetà (250 km west) and Fortaleza de São João (20 km away within Rio). And for the 2028 Summer Olympics, a baseball stadium in Los Angeles will be modified into a temporary aquatics venue to host the swimming, synchronized swimming and diving events.

World Aquatics (Previously FINA) sets standards for swimming pools used in international competitions.[1] Its requirements are not met by many "Olympic-sized" pools; for example of the 15 or more Olympic-sized pools in the Philippines, only the one at New Clark City Aquatics Center is FINA-certified. FINA's requirement that a pool must be 2 meters deep (with 3 meters recommended) is met by some pools elsewhere being adjustable in depth at their shallow ends, such for the competition pool in Tromsø, Norway.

Specialization of Kenya, other East African countries in track, of Cuba in boxing, has been attributed by some to their lack of investment in pools and other athletic facilities.[2] There have been numerous calls within countries for Olympic level facilities, e.g. Kenya below, even in developed nations such as Canada, where the capital region around Ottawa is deemed to be under-served. Just as it is hard for a tropical nation to develop what's needed to be competitive in bobsled, so is it difficult for many nations to afford the upfront and high continuing costs of Olympic pools, given other needs.

In recent years, there has been possibility for some third world countries to obtain needed investment through China's Belt and Road program. "Chinese construction companies also helped the Government of Kenya build a US$52 million sports stadium with a seating capacity of 60,000 people, an Olympic-size swimming pool, and a modern gymnasium to host the fourth All-Africa games ..."[3] Plan for initiative to build an Olympic stadium in Kuwait.[4][5]

No instances of Western nations constructing aquatic centers in Third World countries come to mind. In some cases, competition-level facilities were built for an Olympics or other international competition, only to fall quickly into disrepair. That appears to have happened in Kenya and more recently in Rio de Janeiro. For the latter, however, plans were in place to repurpose some of its pools to other locations, and more repurposing ended up being done given deteriorating conditions of arenas.

Swimming pools, worldwide, are numerous. For the facilities that have actually been used in an Olympics, see List of Olympic venues in swimming. For very large ones, see List of largest swimming pools.

Facilities by nation include:

Algeria

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Piscine du Complexe Olympique, Algiers, used in 2007 All-Africa Games. The 1978 All-Africa Games were also held in Algiers.

Argentina

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Australia

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Belgium

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Brazil

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Canada

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50 m pools in Canada, from west to east, include:

British Columbia:

  • Vancouver Aquatic Centre, West End, Vancouver, a City of Vancouver facility, has a 50 m pool, and has 1m and 3m diving boards and a diving tower with 5 m, 7.5 m, and 10 m height platforms.[12]

Alberta:

Manitoba:

Ontario: Toronto

Ontario: Ottawa

Ontario: Guelph

Quebec: Montreal:

Nova Scotia: Halifax


Chile

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China

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Congo

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Croatia

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Cuba

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Dominican Republic

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Egypt

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Finland

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France

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Germany

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Olympic Swimming Stadium in Berlin

Greece

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Hungary

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India

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Ireland

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Italy

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Japan

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Kenya

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Note: 1985 call in the National Assembly for an Olympic pool, among other facilities, so we are not limited to track events.[35]

Malaysia

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Mexico

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Monaco

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  • Rainier III Nautical Stadium, a salt water Olympic sized pool, constructed in 1961 out of a swimming area that was sectioned off from Monaco's harbor.

Morocco

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Mozambique

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Netherlands

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New Zealand

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Nigeria

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North Korea

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Norway

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Norway has four "Olympic-sized" pools, including:

  • Oasen, a public swimming pool built inside a rock cavern in Namsos
  • Indoor 50-by-25-metre (164 ft × 82 ft) pool at Tøyenbadet, Tøyen, Oslo. In 2022, Tøyenbadet was being entirely rebuilt, to reopen in 2023.[47]
  • A 50-metre (160 ft) pool at Tromsøbadet, Tromsø, Norway's northernmost competition pool. The pool meets the requirements for national and international competitions. At the shallow end of the pool the depth can be adjusted from 0–2 metres (0.0–6.6 ft).[48]

Other pools include:

Pakistan

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"Unfortunately, in Pakistan there is actually a lack of swimming pools and facilities. There is only one swimming pool in the entire country of international quality, ... At the age of thirteen, she became Pakistan's first female Olympic swimmer at the 2004 Summer Olympic games."[49]

Peru

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Philippines

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There were 15 Olympic-sized (50 by 15 metres (164 ft × 49 ft) pools and more being built, as of 2019, in the Philippines, and about 20 other 50-meter pools.

Poland

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Russia

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South Africa

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South Korea

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  • Jamsil Indoor Swimming Pool (1980), in Seoul Olympic Park, which hosted the 1988 Summer Olympics. It has an outdoor 50m x 25m, 10-lanes pool, an indoor 50m x 12.5m 5-lane pool, and an indoor 25m x 25m diving pool with 1m and 3m diving boards and 1m, 3m, 5m, 7.5m and 10m diving platforms.[59][60]
  • K-26, a pool with depth 26 metres (85 ft), the deepest swimming pool of its kind in Asia (vs. Taiwan's Divecube with depth 21 metres (69 ft)).[61]

Spain

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Sweden

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  • List of swimming pools in Sweden

Taiwan

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  • Divecube, in Taichung, a 21 metres (69 ft) deep pool asserted to be deepest swimming pool of its kind in Asia,[62] since submarined by K-26 in South Korea.

Turkey

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United Arab Emirates

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United Kingdom

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The UK has numerous Olympic-size pools itemized in List of long course swimming pools in the United Kingdom. Selected ones from that list, and other notable pools of the UK include:

England

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Scotland

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Wales

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United States

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Arizona

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California

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Georgia

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Illinois

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Michigan

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Missouri

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  • Shaw Park, Clayton, a near suburb of St. Louis. It has an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

Nebraska

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New York

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Oregon

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Pennsylvania

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Virginia

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Washington

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Zimbabwe

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See also

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References

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  2. ^ Danyel Reiche (July 2016). Success and Failure of Countries at the Olympic Games. ISBN 9781317632764.
  3. ^ Dibie, Robert A. (July 6, 2017). Business and Government Relations in Africa. Routledge. ISBN 9781351792653 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "Kuwait and China seek diversifying economy via Belt and Road Initiative". Al-Monitor. 2021.
  5. ^ "China's Belt and Road Initiative is probably ‘the riskiest environmental venture in history’, researcher warns" June 13, 2018. Article possibly available here.
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  10. ^ "Brazil's Olympic Pools Are On The Move". April 19, 2017.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b Andy Ross (April 16, 2018). "Rio Olympic Pool Finds New Home In Salvador, Brazil". Swimming World.
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  13. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Jennifer Chevalier (August 17, 2016). "Competitive swimmers plead for new Olympic pool in Ottawa: Swim clubs say promising athletes are leaving the city in search of better facilities". CBC News.
  14. ^ "Donald D. Summerville Olympic Pools". City of Toronto. 6 March 2017.
  15. ^ Chris Bateman (August 5, 2016). "Toronto's Summerville pool is a slice of the Mediterranean". Spacing.
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  18. ^ "Home". Markham Pan Am Centre.
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  34. ^ Jump up to: a b c Time Out Tokyo writers (15 June 2022). "10 best public swimming pools in Tokyo – from ¥200 per entry /Jump into these cool and cheap municipal pools open to all swimmers". Time Out.
  35. ^ "Kenya Gazette". 19 March – 6 June 1985.
  36. ^ "Best public swimming pools in Kuala Lumpur". Time Out Kuala Lumpur. March 31, 2015.
  37. ^ NEW YEARS DAY 2022: Walking to Chin Woo Swimming Pool from Merdeka MRT Station, Youtube, shows 10-lane pool
  38. ^ "Olympic Swimming Pool". TAD Sports Lab.
  39. ^ "Olympic Size Swimming Pool - Review of Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel & Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Tripadvisor". www.tripadvisor.com.
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  50. ^ "Pakistan Digest". 1975.
  51. ^ "Helping Lima 2019 deliver its Aquatics Centre in record time". www.arup.com.
  52. ^ "LIMA 2019 Delivers VIDENA Aquatic Center to Peruvian Swimming Federation". 6 June 2019.
  53. ^ "Peru bursts with pride as Lima opens Pan Am Games". Reuters. 27 July 2019.
  54. ^ "Aquatics and Multisport Centres for Lima 2019 officially completed". 11 June 2019.
  55. ^ "Olympic pool - Aquapark - Olympic and recreational swimming pools, spa & wellness, Russian banya, squash courts, swimming lessons, aqua aerobic". www.wodnypark.com.pl.
  56. ^ Kowalska, Małgorzata Zofia (12 September 2017). Urban Politics of a Sporting Mega Event: Legitimacy and Legacy of Euro 2012 in Anthropological Perspective. ISBN 9783319521053.
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  61. ^ "K-26 in South Korea - Explore Asia's Deepest Diving Pool".
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  63. ^ "Riverbank State Park (Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park)". parks.ny.gov.
  64. ^ Kodosky, Robert (2024). The Nile Swim Club of Yeadon. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781467156127. Retrieved 2024-06-25.