The Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (SOPAC), formerly Sydney International Aquatic Centre (SIAC), is a swimming venue located in the

Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, located 13 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the City of Parramatta, City of Parramatta Council. It i ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. Built in 1994, the SOPAC was a major venue for the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

as it hosted the

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 ...

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), ...

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 ...

, the medal events for

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 ...

, and the swimming portion of the

modern pentathlon The modern pentathlon is an Summer Olympics, Olympic multisport that consists of five events: fencing (one-touch épée followed by direct elimination), freestyle swimming, obstacle course racing, Laser pistol (sport), laser pistol shooting, and ...

competitions. The SOPAC has since been a host venue for numerous schools and swimming associations around New South Wales. Currently, it has most notably been the venue for the annual CAS Swimming Championships. It is also scheduled to be the site of the 2022 Duel in the Pool."Swimming's ultimate rivalry to return in Sydney"
''

Swimming Australia Swimming Australia is the peak governing body for competitive swimming in Australia. The body has approximately 100,000 registered members nationally in 1100 clubs across the country, which includes swimmers, coaches, officials, administrators ...

''. 19 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022."United States, Australia to Square Off at 2022 Duel in the Pool"
'' USA Swimming''. 20 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022. The SOPAC also includes a swim shop at the entry of the arena, a play area, a health club and operates swimming classes for all ages. The arena currently holds 10,000 people. Capacity was boosted to 17,000 during the 2000 Summer Olympics.

2013 Fire

In October 2013, a large grass fire ripped through the centre's carpark, destroying more than 40 cars, one motorcycle and forcing 1,500 people to evacuate.Blaze rips through Sydney carpark
''3 News NZ''. 14 October 2013.

2024 Roof Fire

In Mid 2024, a solar panel issue sparked a fire on the roof of the Aquatic Centre. The centre and swimming competition at the time was evacuated.

SOPAC Swim Club

Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre's Swim Club or SOPAC Swim Club, is a high performance squad program and club run by Swimming NSW. The coaching team consists of: Matthew Brown, Ryan Frost, Daniel Benvenuti, Pancha Thambo and William Choi. The club has often placed in the top 5 of the Senior and Junior State/Metropolitan Championship pointscores.

Gallery

File:Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre entrance.jpg, Entrance File:Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (5714949105).jpg, Main pool

References

External links