Water chaos in Singapore: Women's World Cup races postponed for quality!

Water chaos in Singapore: Women's World Cup races postponed for quality!

The first World Cup race of the open water swimmers in Singapore, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday, July 15, 2025, at 2:00 a.m. CEST, was postponed by one day due to poor water quality. The new date for the 10-kilometer race is now Wednesday, July 16, right after the men's race in which the Salzburg Luca Karl will take part. The decision to shift was announced by World Aquatics a good seven hours before the original start and was in the interest of the security of the athletes.

tests in the days before the decision had shown that the water quality was in the specified limit values. However, the analyzes of samples, which were taken on July 13, crossed these limit values, which led to the shift. Further water samples are to be removed in the coming days to monitor the situation. However, it remains unclear whether the other competitions can take place as planned. This problem is reminiscent of previous discussions about water quality during the Olympic Games in Paris, where athletes reported health problems.

Details about the races

The women's race is now set for Wednesday at 4.15 a.m. CEST, while the men's race with participants such as Florian Wellbrock and Oliver Klemet begins at 1.30 a.m. CEST. All races take place on the Palawan Beach on the island of Sentosa. The national coach Bernd Berkhahn also commented on the pollution of the water and reported problems with jellyfish that could burden the swimmers.

In addition to the current challenges, water sports in Germany face a general development: Although swimming is one of the most popular water sports in the country, the number of public baths continuously decreases. In 2023, around 534,000 people had membership in a swimming club, but the number of non -swimmers rose, which is due to a lack of infrastructure and lack of funding. Other water sports such as sailing and diving are also very popular, but offer different challenges and interests for athletes.

The situation in Singapore is therefore reflected in a larger context that illuminates the conditions and the infrastructure for water sports in different regions. Experts and those responsible are challenged to ensure both the safety of the athletes as well as the continuation of the competitions under acceptable conditions.

Laola1 reports about the shift, while yahoo news address the special challenges of the athletes. Further information about the structure of water sports in Germany provides Statista .