Arab Excellence & New Records in Dubai Open Swimming Championship 2025

The Championship, which was held with participation of huge numbers of Olympic & world champions, took place at Hamdan Sports Complex and organized by Hamilton Aquatics and ESM Academy in collaboration with the Dubai Sports Council, as part of the Council's policy to attract & develop sports talents, and in line with Dubai Government’s vision to attract & develop talents in all fields.

The Arab male & female swimmers have attained new records at the level of their national federations during this Championship. In this regard, the Tunisian swimmer Habiba Belghaith has set a new Tunisian record in the 50 M breaststroke (women's category) with a time of 32.35 seconds, surpassing the previous Tunisian record of 32.68 seconds which was achieved by her compatriot Sara Lajnef.

Tara Aloul of Jordan finished the 200 M race (women’s individual category) within a time of 2:24.78 minutes to break her previous record of 2:25.56 minutes.

Zaid Al-Saraj from Saudi Arabia has attained a new Saudi national record in the 50 M freestyle (men's category) with a time of 23.22 seconds, surpassing the previous record of his compatriot Yousef Bu Arish with 23.35 seconds.

The Lebanese swimmer Lynn Al-Hajj achieved a new record for the Lebanese open swimming in the 200 M breaststroke (women's category), as she recorded 2:32.74 minutes, breaking her previous record of 2:33.22 minutes.

The British Olympic champion Ben Praud secured 1st place in the 50 M freestyle with a time of 21.99 seconds. The Switzerland’s Noé Pont, the bronze medalist in the 100 M butterfly at Tokyo Olympics 2020 and three-time world champion, has opened his 2025 season by setting a new world record of 22.83 seconds in the 50 M butterfly during the Championship.  

The Lebanese swimmer Lamar Al-Hajj from Decathlon Club was named as the Best Junior Female Swimmer, while Santiago Valbuena from Dhahran Youth Swimming Club in Saudi Arabia won the Best Junior Male Swimmer’s Award. The All-Stars Swimming Academy from the UAE claimed the Best Junior Club’s Title.

The Netherland’s Tessa Jelly from Feyenoord Albion Swimming Club won the best swimmer’s title in the women's open category, besides the short distances’ title. The Netherlands’ Shawn Nieuwold from Feyenoord Albion Swimming Club won the best swimmer’s title in the men's open category, and gained the short distances’ title. “My Swim Club” from Dubai won the Best Club’s title in the Open Category.

Distinctive Participation:

Dubai Open Swimming Championship was held with distinctive participation of 1,294 male & female swimmers who competed in 136 different races in juniors & professionals categories, represented 122 global clubs of 30 countries from the various continents of the world; these are: Algeria, Oman, Australia, Pristina, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Bahrain, Romania, Belarus, Russia, Egypt, Scotland, England, Serbia, Estonia, Seychelles, Faroe Islands, South Africa, India, Switzerland, Iran, Tanzania, Jordan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kuwait, Lebanon, Uganda, in addition to the UAE.

Olympic Champions:

The Championship witnessed participation of elite of Olympic champions & world record’s holders, besides group of elite of swimmers from various countries of the world, and therefore the event has become one of the top competitive swimming championships. Among the prominent participants in this Championship were the British Olympic champion Duncan Scott, winner of 8 Olympic medals & 20 global medals / the Swiss Noy Bonte, who gained Olympic bronze medal and 19 world medals / the British world champion Ben Praud, the winner of Paris Olympics 2024 silver medal besides 29 world medals / the Canadian Marie-Sophie Harvey, winner of 21 world medals /Lara Van Niekerk, winner of two world medals.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.