European Aquatics (formerly , , popularly known by its acronym LEN) is the
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
an governing body for
aquatic sports
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
affiliated to
World Aquatics
World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA (; ), is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competitions in List of water sports, water sports. It is one of several interna ...
— it is the Continental Association for Europe. It was formally organized in 1927 in
Bologna
Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
, and since 2015 is headquartered in
Nyon
Nyon (; historically German language, German: or and Italian language, Italian: , ) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in Nyon District in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is located some 25 kilometer ...
.
European Aquatics comprises 52 national swimming federations in Europe, and includes
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
which for Olympic-sport purposes is grouped with Europe.
member list
of the European Olympic Committees (EOC); retrieved 2012-03-05. European Aquatics is overseen by an elected Bureau (board) composed of Members representing 17 different Federations. European Aquatics oversees aquatic sports in Europe: diving
Diving most often refers to:
* Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water
* Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes
Diving or Dive may also refer to:
Sports
* Dive (American football), ...
, swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...
, open water swimming
Open water swimming is a swimming discipline which takes place in outdoor bodies of water such as open oceans, lakes, and rivers. Competitive open water swimming is governed by the International Swimming Federation, World Aquatics (formerly kno ...
, synchronized swimming
Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming), also known as artistic swimming, is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by World A ...
and water polo
Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
.
Events
Championships
European Aquatics organizes one championship (European Aquatics Championships
The European Aquatics Championships is the continental Aquatic sports, Aquatics championship for Europe, which is organised by Ligue Européenne de Natation, LEN—the governing body for aquatics in Europe. The Championships are currently held eve ...
), involving four of the five LEN disciplines (swimming, diving artistic swimming, and open water swimming).
* European Aquatics Championships
The European Aquatics Championships is the continental Aquatic sports, Aquatics championship for Europe, which is organised by Ligue Européenne de Natation, LEN—the governing body for aquatics in Europe. The Championships are currently held eve ...
''(held in even years; includes swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and Masters)''
Discipline championships
European Aquatics organizes five more discipline championships (swimming (25m), diving, water polo, artistic swimming, and open water).
*Swimming (25m): European Short Course Swimming Championships
The European Short Course Swimming Championships, variously referred to informally as the "Short Course Europeans" or "European 25m Championships", are a swimming meet, organized by LEN. The meet features swimmers from Europe, competing in event ...
''(run every year, from 2015 run every second year)''
*Diving: European Diving Championships ''(run every second year since 2009
2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
)''
*Water Polo: European Water Polo Championship
The European Water Polo Championship is a sport competition for national water polo teams, currently held biannually and organized by the Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN), the governing European aquatics federation. There are both men's and wo ...
''(run every second year)''
*Artistic Swimming: European Artistic Swimming Championships
European, or Europeans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe and other West ...
''(2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
)''
*Open Water: European Open Water Championships
The European Open Water Swimming Championships are an event organized by LEN (''Ligue Européenne de Natation''), dedicated to open water swimming competitions. The event was held biennially from 1989 to 1993; since 1995 the open water swimming h ...
''(run every second year since 2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
)''
Junior championships
European Aquatics also runs various competitions restricted to a younger age:
*Swimming: European Junior Swimming Championships
The European Junior Swimming Championships (50 m) is an annual swimming competition for European swimmers organized by the Ligue Européenne de Natation and held over five days. ''(run every year);'' European U-23 Swimming Championships
The European Under 23 (or "U-23") Swimming Championships (50 m) is a biennial swimming competition for European swimmers organized by the Ligue Européenne de Natation and held over three days. ''(run every second year)''
*Diving: European Junior Diving Championships
The European Junior Swimming Championships (50 m) is an annual swimming competition for European swimmers organized by the Ligue Européenne de Natation and held over five days. ''(run every year)''
*Water Polo: U19, U17 and U15 European Water Polo Championship ''(run every second year)''
*Artistic Swimming: European Junior Artistic Swimming Championships ''(run every year)''
*Open Water: European Junior Open Water Championships ''(run every year)''
Masters championships
*Swimming: European Masters Swimming Championships ''(run every second year)''
Member federations
The following national federations are part of European Aquatics (Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials are, however, banned from every FINA event through the end of 2022):
Member federation bans
On 3 March 2022, European Aquatics indefinitely banned Russians and Belarusians, and the corresponding European Aquatics member federations, from competing at or officiating any European Aquatics event to show support for Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
in addition to banning European Aquatics events from being held in Russia and Belarus.["LEN agrees not to invite Russian and Belarusian teams and supports Ukrainian athletes"](_blank)
. ''LEN''. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.[Byrnes, Liz (3 March 2022)]
"Russia And Belarus Barred From Competing At European Events: Governing Body LEN"
''Swimming World
}
''Swimming World'' is a US-based quarterly swimming magazine that was first published in a magazine format as ''Junior Swimmer'' in January 1960. It concurrently runs online websites ''Swimming World Magazine'' and ''Swimming World News'' (kn ...
''. Retrieved 3 March 2022.[Sutherland, James (3 March 2022)]
"LEN Bars Russian & Belarusians From Competing In Its Events"
'' SwimSwam''. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
European Aquatics Awards winners
See also
*Swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...
* International Swimming Federation – FINA
* List of swimming competitions
References
External links
LEN Official Website
{{Sports governing bodies in Europe
Swimming governing bodies
International sports governing bodies in Europe
1927 establishments in Europe
Sports organizations established in 1927
Aquatics governing bodies