COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - With the concern over the COVID-19 global pandemic rising in the United States, USA Artistic Swimming announces the cancellation of stop number eight on the 2020 FINA Artistic Swimming World Series/America Open. 

This event would have been stop number eight on the Federation Internationale de Natation (FINA) Artistic Swimming World Series Tour which included stops in Spain, Egypt, Hungary, Greece, Russia and China. All those events have been canceled or postponed amid the Coronavirus pandemic. 

USA Artistic Swimming CEO, Adam Andrasko, said while the events on the FINA World Series tour are not on the scale of the Olympic Games, it is the increased human and athlete safety concerns for the international and domestic swimmers that ultimately led to the decision to cancel this event. 

“These are not easy times, but this decision is now easy to make,” Andrasko said. “Hosting an international event at this time places many people in jeopardy. We feel for every Artistic Swimming athlete, but we also know our community will fully understand why this decision was made.” 

Over 250 elite artistic swimmers and Olympians from around the world were expected to attend this event, instead, athletes are navigating a new normal as most pools are closed for the time being. 

“Like everyone else, we look forward to the day that we can return to the pool and ultimately competition,” Andrasko continued. “Until then, we will continue to inspire the world and be a positive force in the lives of so many that are struggling through this time. We can demonstrate how We Move As One more now than ever.” 

Andrasko said USA Artistic Swimming will now look to FINA to begin scheduling future events and be prepared to host a top tier event in 2021.