Opening day of Singapore World Cup event cancelled due to poor air quality

Poor air quality in Singapore has led to the opening day of the fifth FINA World Cup of the season being cancelled ©Getty Images

The International Swimming Federation (FINA) have announced that day one of the World Cup event in Singapore today has been cancelled as a result of poor air quality in the south-Asian nation.

Competition had been put in doubt yesterday due to the high level of smog near the OCBC Aquatic Centre, an outdoor venue, with the threat that should the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) record a reading of over 200 the event would not go ahead.

The Singapore National Environment Agency's health advisory recommended that when the PSI records a reading over 200, a mark deemed very unhealthy, prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertions should be avoided.

With the concerns over the air quality prior to the meet FINA had already cancelled the longer distance events, the women’s 800 metres and men’s 1,500m freestyle races.

They have now confirmed that today's action will no longer take place stating that the “level of haze in the venue overpassed the limit established by the Singapore government”, with a PSI reading reaching 190 ahead of the evening races but also showing an upward trend, suggesting the quality was continuing to worsen.

Having being forced to cancel the opening day, FINA reiterated that the athletes, officials and spectators’ health is their “number one criteria”.

The second day is still currently scheduled to take place tomorrow, however it will again be subject to evaluations of the air quality, which are due to take place one hour before the heats in the morning and prior to the finals in the evening.

FINA are hopeful the second day of competition will go ahead ©Getty Images

As a consequence of the cancellation of the races, prize money is set to be decided by a comparison of the best times made by the swimmers entered into the races in Singapore, from other events which took place in the second cluster of the series in Hong Kong and Beijing.

Following Singapore, swimmers are due to head to Japan’s capital city Tokyo between October 28 and 29.

Doha will then host the next leg of the series between November 2 and 3, before the athletes head from Qatar to the United Arab Emirates for the closing meet in Dubai from November 6 and 7.