As para swimmers from eight nations prepare to compete for the first time this weekend within the main programme of the European Aquatics Championships, EA President Antonio Silva has hailed the landmark inclusion – and sounded a rallying cry for further assistance in building on this vital start.
Speaking to para swimmers taking part at Paris 2026 in a Para Swimming Workshop, Silva described about the two-year action plan that is now underway.
“We currently have15 of our 52 national federations where para swimming is fully integrated. We need to dial up with all the other 37 federations to see what is happening and how we can help,” he said.
“We have started the action plan with 15 federations to show it is possible and that we are going to do it.
“We have integration of our coaches. And in Sofia recently 70 of our officials, many of whom will be here, attended a para education event.
“Now we need to push for the rest of the federations to join because this will be a reality for us.
“Our main aim is very simple. We want para aquatic sports to be included in the governance of all our 52 national federations.”
EA Sports Manager Farouk Ben Jeddi told the workshop that a total of 40 national federations had responded to a survey sent out by European Aquatics on the topic of para aquatics activity.
Of those who responded, 15 ran a fully integrated programme, while 25 had yet to integrate their para aquatics.
EA conducted interviews with three nations where para aquatics is fully integrated – Great Britain, Finland and Portugal. They also spoke to countries where integration is still in progress such as Ireland, Turkiye and Hungary.
Finally they sought advice from Australia and Canada, which conduct their own para aquatics initiatives.
EA then created a para swimming toolkit based upon five pillars: governance, procedures and organisation, education and training, co-ordination of events, and finally communications and marketing.
Silva also explained how EA were breaking new ground in creating competitions not just for para swimmers, but for para athletes in open water swimming, artistic swimming and water polo.
“Later this summer we will have more than 60 para athletes taking part in the EA Masters Championships in swimming, artistic swimming and open water.,” he said. “This is a start.”
Silva added the EA were also planning to stage the first ever short course par a swimming competition in 2027.
“We could have stayed with our strategy with the six sports we have and Masters events,” he said. “Of course it is enough. But we don’t think like this. We don’t think there are two different types of sports. There is one, where disabled athletes can also participate. This is my view.
“Inside every country we need to build the bridges so that sooner or later we have full inclusion of para sport inside European Aquatics and national federations.
“But for now all of you here can say you were in Paris 2026 for the first ever inclusive European Aquatics Championships.”
Mike Rowbottom for European Aquatics
