Para Swimming World Championships are coming to Manchester - when it is and who’s competing

The world’s best para-swimmers are coming to Manchester next year for one of the biggest dates in the sport’s calendar.

The Manchester Aquatics Centre has been chosen to host the 11th Para Swimming World Championships in July and August 2023.

A host of famous faces from the Paralympics will descend on the city to chase glory in the pool, with gold medals at stake and world records there to be broken.

It promises to be a spectacular week of elite disability sport and marks the first time the prestigious global event has come to Manchester.

When is the Para Swimming World Championships coming to Manchester?

The 11th Para Swimming World Championships will take place at the Manchester Aquatics Centre from 31 July to 6 August 2023.

The pool is already the home of the British Para Swimming National Performance Centre and is stepping up to hosting world-level competition in partnership with UK Sport and the council.

Manchester 2023 will be the third time the world championships have taken place in the United Kingdom, following London in 2019 and Glasgow in 2015.

It will also be just 12 months after the 10th world championships take place in Madeira, as they were postponed for a year to avoid clashing with the rearranged Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

Last time on home soil in London there were plenty of British successes to celebrate, including a sensational seven-gold haul by Alice Tai and hat-tricks of titles apiece for Tully Kearney and Reece Dunn.

That championships welcomed 637 swimmers from 73 nations to a thrilling event which saw 188 records broken, including 39 world records, and the British swimmers come away with 47 medals.

With the top para-swimmers coming to Manchester just a year out from the Paris Paralympics in 2024, the competition promises to be fierce as everyone looks to impress and bring home the medals.

What has been said about the championships coming to Manchester?

Craig Nicholson, head of World Para Swimming, said: “We are extremely happy to share the news that Manchester will host the 2023 World Championships.

“The Manchester Aquatics Centre is a fantastic venue and the city’s tradition in hosting great sporting events speaks for itself.

“We look forward to a remarkable event in a country with a true passion for para swimming as we witnessed during Glasgow 2015 and London 2019.”

British Swimming CEO Jack Buckner added: “I’m delighted that the UK once again can host the championships and we look forward to welcoming everyone to Manchester.

“London 2019 was fantastic, and I know that everybody involved will work tirelessly to ensure we deliver a spectacular event for athletes and fans alike again. “

Coun Luthfur Rahman OBE, deputy leader of Manchester City Council, said: “This is fantastic news for both swimming and the para sport movement, and I’m proud that Manchester has been chosen to host the championships in our flagship Aquatics Centre.

“Manchester has a long history of hosting sporting events that have proven to be a huge success. I’m sure the 2023 Para Swimming World Championships will be no different.”

‘Having the competition in Manchester is really special’

For the athletes who live and train in Manchester the prospect of the world championships coming to the city is one to relish.

Paralympic silver medallist Grace Harvey said: “I’m incredibly excited that the 2023 Para Swimming World Championships are coming to Manchester.

“It’s my home pool, so it’ll just be great to have some really fast competition right before the 2024 Paralympics in Paris the following year.

“Having the competition in Manchester is really special. A lot of the British Para-Swimming athletes are based in Manchester, so it’ll be a great home advantage - and I know we actually love competing here whenever we get the chance to do that!”