Officials Diary - Three Kiwis Share Behind the Scenes in Singapore

Officials Diary – 2025 World Aquatics Championships

We had three Kiwis involved in delivery of the recent 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. Gavin Ion (Waikato), Paul Matson (Wellington) and John West (Auckland) each returned to the international stage for their respective roles.

Each of these members have shared some insights into what it was like in Singapore.

Gavin Ion – Pool

Ion was fortunate enough to be selected for his second World Aquatics Championships. It was a well organised event held across eight days with sixteen sessions of competition in total. There were approximately 1,000 swimmers and about 40 officials involved in the pool swimming.

The aquatic sports were mainly held at the Singapore Sports Hub. This included diving, artistic swimming, water polo and swimming. For the swimming events, Singapore built a temporary pool complex. The facility was well set up to cater to needs and the pool itself hosted many championship records and also three world records.

Ion completed a variety of roles in his capacity as a technical official, including Video Analysis, Judge of Stroke, Chief IOT, IOT, Resolution Desk and one day as a reserve.

Through these various roles he was able to challenge himself and explore some new areas such as the Video Analysis Review (VAR). VAR is similar in concept to the TMO used in rugby; the Bunker used in rugby league and VAR used in football. He was responsible for looking after two lanes. The role involved using cameras above the water, below the water and at water level (you have a choice) to observe the races at full speed and to flag any areas of potential disqualifications. The footage can then be further analysed at slower speeds to determine the full nature of the concern. VAR can respond to concerns raised on the pool deck (an official reports a potential DQ to the Referee who automatically refers it to VAR for review) or initiated by the VAR room itself. The only thing VAR can't determine is false starts as the World Aquatics rules are clear that the Referee and the Starter have to agree (no reference to VAR).

Working in the VAR room was one of his biggest learnings. We all talk about "the swimmer gets the benefit of the doubt" and VAR helps to increase the certainty of this happening in practice. Seeing something from below the water that you are certain is a DQ and then having the opportunity to look at it above the water from a different angle overturned some decisions.

Ion found that it was great to be part of a diverse group of officials who challenged each other and set a high standard. It's commonly discussed about the need for officials to work together as a team, but he discovered that officiating at a world championship took this to another level. He learnt that the process was important and synchronising the movement of officials at both ends and sides of the pool was critical.

Overall, Ion found the eight days of intense competition to be challenging but rewarding.

"I walked away at the end tired but inspired by what we, as a team of officials, had achieved. I made many friends around the world and particularly in Singapore. This is one of the reasons I enjoy and keep officiating. It is all about the swimmers and the people who create the environment for them to succeed."

Paul Matson – Open Water

Singapore marked Matson's third World Aquatics Championships. Across the seven open water events held in Singapore, he was appointed to six different roles. These included being referee for two events, an assistant referee, feeding platform official, finish judge, turn judge, and assistant safety officer for the others.

The open water swimming took place on the open ocean side of Sentosa Island in Singapore, off Palawan Beach. It was a unique location, with a resort lining one side of the course and commercial shipping lanes on the other. Combined with the tides and currents, it offered a truly authentic open water experience.

Despite an initial postponement, the event ran smoothly. It was fantastic to see over 80 entries in the men's 5km, an impressive turnout for a world championships.

Whilst Matson thoroughly enjoyed his week officiating at the World Aquatics Championships and loved the opportunity to work alongside officials from around the world, there were two moments that stood out to him as his favourite moments.

Matson felt a surge of pride as he was standing on the boat near the start line, and saw a swimmer arrive on the start platform with "NZL" on their cap. He felt it was great to see Louis Clark on the start line of the 3km knockout where he set the early pace and followed the front pack. The other was to see fellow Kiwi John West take the lead to competently ensure a successful open water swimming competition – so kudos and well done to John.

Matson noted that open water swimming is forever evolving, and officiating must adapt accordingly. New formats, such as the 3km knockout, which made its world championship debut in Singapore, are changing the dynamics of competition. He could see a shift toward more explosive starts, with swimmers spreading out quickly rather than staying in a tight pack until the final sprint. He believes this will require a different approach to officiating. Interestingly, across all seven events, not a single yellow flag was issued.

Matson acknowledged it meant a lot to have the opportunity to officiate in Singapore.

"As noted in the SNZ announcement, this was my first major international appointment in nine years. Being selected again after previous opportunities was a tremendous honour. I’m deeply passionate about open water swimming, and I was determined to make the most of the chance to officiate at another world championship."

Matson also acknowledged the importance of protecting the environment.

"For everyone involved in open water swimming, it's essential that we consider the long-term sustainability of our events. Once again, we experienced a delay due to water quality concerns, an increasingly common challenge. We must all take responsibility and remain proactive in protecting and preserving the natural environments that make open water swimming possible. These venues are not guaranteed, and we cannot afford to take their availability for granted."

John West – Open Water

West returned to Singapore as a member of the World Aquatics Open Water Technical Swimming Committee. His role was responsible for the conduct of the whole competition, working alongside the World Aquatics staff and Local Organising Committee to ensure the venue and competitions are run correctly. His role required him to arrive a day earlier than the other officials specifically to meet with the Organising Committee, Venue & Competition management teams, to inspect the venue and correct any areas that need amendment or improvement.

The role of the Committee had actually commenced many months prior, with discussions and conference calls discussing the layout of the course, the movement of broadcast teams on the platform and on the course, and the overall flow of teams, officials and spectators through the venue. They would also check and approve the technical equipment to be used and make sure all the necessary equipment and forms are prepared in advance. The Committee was responsible for reviewing and approving the content for the Team Leaders meeting, and at the Team leaders meeting West received all the feeders forms and ensured all athletes had a registered feeder. He would then supervise the draw for the start list and feeding platform positions.

Effectively, West's role was the event manager, responsible for all of the technical officials and their assignments, and running the officials briefings and debriefings for each race to try and make things better for the next one.

The venue was at Palawan Beach on the island of Sentosa, a resort area a short distance from the hustle and bustle of downtown Singapore. The course was well laid out, but narrow due to a barrier cable to protect the course area from the busy ferry and shipping lanes offshore. The wash from the regular ferries passing by created waves on the course which added to the challenges for athletes and officials alike.

One of the challenges of holding the July's World Aquatics Championships in Singapore was that the water was very hot and although it was expected to be near our upper limit of 30 degrees, it proved to be above. The Committee had been monitoring temperatures since May and noticed that temperatures remained relatively constant until around 11:30am when the heat of the sun started raising water temperatures. For this reason, in consultation with Dr David Gerrard and his colleagues from World Aquatics Sports Medicine Committee, the decision was made early to move the 5km competitions to commence 30 minutes earlier to try and get everything completed before 11:30am.

The Committee had also been monitoring the water quality and had been receiving acceptable readings until immediately before competition which indicated an extraordinarily high level of bacteria. The Organising Committee started to measure water quality twice daily and there were many meetings and late night messages and calls involving the Sports Medicine Committee, the Organising Committee and World Aquatics senior management to determine a course of action once clean water readings were received.

West enjoyed the introduction of the new knockout event to the World Aquatics Championships schedule.

"I enjoyed Ichika Kajimoto (Japan) winning the Women’s 3km Knock Out and to see this event in the World Championships for the first time. It was meaningful to me to be part of it’s introduction to the World Championships programme, and also to see Japan coming up with a World Champion, when they were perhaps not expected to win here."

West thoroughly enjoyed the experience in Singapore.

"Despite the challenges, I found it extremely satisfying to be able to lead and guide the officiating team and to deliver a successful competition for all the athletes, teams and World Aquatics. We emphasise working as one team and presenting a professional event for all concerned. It will be with some sadness to leave this role in future editions of the World Championships and Olympic Games."

After the open water swimming was complete, West was elected on to the World Aquatics Bureau, becoming the first Kiwi since 2011 to have a seat at the highest table at the international body.

West's Bureau Announcement

Thanks to each of our Kiwis sharing their insights about what life was like helping to deliver the swimming competitions in Singapore. Congratulations on your appointments and for acquitting yourselves to high standards on the international stage, well deserved recognition for each of you.