World Aquatics, the new name of the International Swimming Federation, announced, Thursday, May 16, 2024, new elections for the Tunisian Swimming Federation after the arrest on Monday of its leaders and anti-doping officials due to a controversy concerning the non-raising of the Tunisian flag during an international competition organized last week in Tunis.
A provisional office will have the mission of temporarily managing the affairs of Tunisian swimming. “It will make the appropriate and necessary amendments to the internal regulations of the national federation and will organize a new election within six months,” says a press release from World Aquatics, which explained this decision after a difficult week for Tunisian swimming as a whole, while reigning Olympic 400m freestyle champion Ahmed Hafnaoui has just revealed that he could miss the Paris 2024 Olympic Games due to an injury, the nature of which has not been specified.
The provisional office “will ensure that the FTA adheres to the highest standards of good governance and transparency,” the press release further indicates.
The leaders of the FTA and the National Anti-Doping Agency (Anad) were arrested as tempers flared over the controversial covering of the Tunisian flag during a competition organized by the FTA at the Radès Olympic swimming pool in Tunis. In response to WADA sanctions which prohibited the flag from being displayed during competitions, the Tunisian flag was covered by a piece of fabric, which outraged President Kaïs Saïed.
The seeds of the current situation were sown late last month when WADA first announced that it would sanction Anad and ban the Tunisian flag at competitions until the agency resolved compliance with new anti-doping laws.
Saied did not react well to the decision and called it an attack on national sovereignty. He also went to the Radès Olympic swimming pool to raise the flag and sing the national anthem. After an investigation, nine people were arrested and should be prosecuted, including the presidents of the two bodies cited, who were placed in custody.
