The congress of the organization, which was held at the venue of the world championship in Fukuoka, voted on this on Tuesday. At the event – at which Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, gave a speech – an image film was also shown, on which the participants could admire the visual plans of the new Budapest center.
Everyone voted in favor of the “relocation” accepted at the suggestion of Bürö, the governing body of World Aquatics, with three no votes against.
President Hussein al-Mussalam, who was elected for another eight years at the beginning of the congress, said that they will not completely say goodbye to Lausanne, Switzerland, which has been the home of the association since 1986, for example, the foundation will continue to have its headquarters there.
“I am grateful to the Hungarian government and the leaders of water sports for giving us the opportunity and for understanding us. I know that they will help any athlete in the world who goes to the new center, where they will not find the president’s office, but water and perfect training locations,” said the sports leader.
Péter Szijjártó was also able to receive an acknowledgment from the president of the association, with whom the contract on the new center was signed.
At the WA congress, the minister welcomed the decision to move the organization to Budapest, and reported that Hungary already has its headquarters for two international sports federations, in addition to ten international organizations, eight of which are affiliated with the UN.
He underlined:
the government is ready to provide the site to the International Swimming Federation for free for 15 years, in addition to tax benefits and exemptions for the organization, and is ready to start negotiations on the necessary infrastructural investments.
In his speech, the head of the ministry called it beyond doubt that the world is living in “crazy times” today, enormous changes are taking place in people’s daily lives, and the global order has been completely turned upside down twice, and a new era is emerging.
According to his words, nothing indicates this better than the fact that the 20th Aquatic World Championship, which is still ongoing, was supposed to be held in 2021, but Japan ended up postponing it due to the coronavirus epidemic, so an extraordinary World Cup took place last year, which was hosted by Budapest.
Prior to this, in 2015, the organization asked Hungary to provide a venue for the World Swimming Championships in 2017 instead of Mexico, which announced its withdrawal, and our country said yes and carried out all the necessary preparations in two years, he recalled.
The point is that we are finally here, we have survived the crisis, and we are ready to face another one
– he said.
Péter Szijjártó expressed his pride in the fact that after 2017 and 2022, Hungary will also be able to host the World Water Championships in 2027, thus achieving the “treble” within ten years. “We did this with pleasure and we are ready to hold any event immediately,” he said.
He then pointed out:
our country plays a prominent role in world swimming, it was among the eight founding members when the International Swimming Federation was established in 1908, and it also won thirty-seven Olympic gold medals in swimming and nine others in water polo.
Today, Hungary is seventh in the overall medal table of the world championships, Hungarian athletes have already won more than a hundred medals, while the country is only 95th in terms of population, and this success story will continue after two more medals were won during the current competitions – he pointed out.
He also emphasized that another record will be set this year, as Zsuzsanna Jakabos is participating in her ninth World Championships, which is unprecedented among Hungarian swimmers.
It can be said without any exaggeration that we Hungarians are a nation of swimmers, we are a nation of swimmers, and the same is true for water polo
– he said, recalling the “most emotional” water polo match of all time, the final of the 1956 Olympic tournament between Hungary and the Soviet Union.
