New event Swim GP to light up Melbourne this November

CLOSER. FASTER. UNMISSABLE.

Swimming Australia – in partnership with Channel 9 – has taken a bold step into the entertainment market to launch a new fans-first format of fast racing this summer.

Swim GP will pit the country’s fastest swimmers against each other in a teams’ format across a gala weekend to invoke rivalry, bragging rights and access to our athletes like never before.

The format is designed to thrust the sport into the entertainment space as much as to sharpen the swimmers’ competitive instincts and comes on the back of last year’s hugely successful Australia v The World.

Over two nights of racing – Friday 13^th & Sat 14^th November 2026 at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (MSAC) – four teams of 20 Dolphins will go head-to-head in short, high-energy sessions built for maximum excitement and nail-biting finishes.

Each team line-up features a mix of the Dolphins biggest stars and rising talent from across the Olympic and Paralympic program, led by elite coaches Dean Boxall, Damian Jones, Mel Marshall and Craig Jackson. 

With a home Games just six years away, Swim GP is ground zero for engaging existing and attracting new fans to Australia’s most successful Olympic sport.

Swimming Australia executives also revealed that Swim GP would become an important part of the calendar for the likes of Olympic gold medallists Mollie O’Callaghan, Cam McEvoy, Lani Pallister, and Paralympic gold medallists Tim Hodge and Lakeisha Patterson.

The Swim GP program of events will showcase a range of race formats including mixed relays, individual and para staggered-start races, high-speed skins races and mystery medleys – with bonus points, coaches calls and fan voting all influencing the outcomes.

The legacy of Swim GP will be felt in 2032 when the Dolphins line up for a home Games with the fever and buoyancy of an engaged fan base that will change the Australian sporting scene.

The 2026 event is supported by the Victorian Government, who have also committed to supporting the 2028 Australian Short Course Championships, also to be hosted at MSAC.

“Swim GP is an next exciting step in our planning ahead of 2032 to engage swimming fans in the theatre and entertainment of our sport,” said Swimming Australia CEO Rob Woodhouse.

“We saw the support off the back of Australia v The World last year, and we know swimming fans love seeing our athletes compete. Building this platform with our partner Nine, we want every household in Australia to know the names of our Dolphins as we lead into 2032 and events like Swim GP allow us to create that platform, for both branding and commercial success.

“We’re thankful for the support of the Victorian Government to deliver this event for the first time, and excited to bring this to swimming and sports fans in Melbourne.”

Dolphin Zac Stubblety-Cook said: “It’s great that the sport is trying new avenues and we’re excited to see what this means for swimming leading into 2032, it’s important to get a home crowd invested in the sport of swimming.”

“And fandom is central to this. We also want to be part of something that creates FOMO … and heated rivalries. We have some of the best swimmers in the world – and I don’t think the Australian public fully realise just how good this Dolphins team is.

“We want them to join us on the journey to 2032 … and this is just the start.”

Tickets for Swim GP will go on sale at 10am tomorrow, Monday 21 September through Ticketek.

Dates for the 2028 Australian Short Course Championships will be published in mid 2027.