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A summer splash
There’s nothing better on a hot summer day than plunging into cool blue water. If you’ve ever imagined yourself doing a perfect dive off the dock, or swimming a world-record time in the pool, you were in for a treat last summer. As the weather heated up, some of the best swimmers from around the world made their way to Montréal to compete at the FINA World Aquatic Championships in July.
Since 1973, FINA has been organizing the world championships for water sports. FINA stands for Fédération Internationale de Natation Amateur, or International Amateur Swimming Federation. This year, more than 2,000 amateur athletes from 160 countries came to Montréal, where they competed in five different sports – swimming, diving, water polo, synchronized swimming and open water swimming. It was the largest sporting competition to be held in Montréal since the 1976 Summer Olympic Games.
If you couldn't get to Montréal in July, you could still watch the events on television. And you can celebrate swimming with two beautiful domestic rate (50¢) stamps Canada Post has issued to honour the Montréal 2005 World Championships. |
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