Event information
The 2026 Australian Open Water Championships will be held from 22 - 25 January, 2026. Stay tuned for more information, including venue, to be announced later in the year.
2026 Australian Open Water Championships and OceanSwim Festival
22-25 January 2026
Koombana Bay
Details and Overview
Competition Information
*SAVE THE DATE* Entries will close at 9:00am AEDT (Sydney time) Tuesday 6th January, 2026. Please be sure to submit your entries before this time! Additional fees will apply for any late submissions, if accepted.
Online Entries will open by mid-September.
All entries that can be processed via Swim Central must be done so and manual entries of this nature will be rejected. Entries utilising a *non-conventional entry method will need to enter via manual entry.
*A “non-conventional” entry method refers to any swimmer wishing to enter using a different open water distance or entering on the basis of your Aus Age or Aus Open qualification. Proof of all non-conventional entries will be required. Please email the Events Team for manual entry assistance.
Please be advised, the Swimming Australia offices will be closed from Monday 22nd December 2025 to Friday 2nd January 2026, inclusive. There will not be any events staff available to assist you during the office closure, so we strongly recommend you process your entries before this time where possible in case you need assistance with your entries.
The Timeline is a GUIDELINE ONLY and is subject to unexpected changes.
A Team Leaders Briefing will be conducted on the night before Session 1 (further details to follow).
Unlike previous years, the SwimAus Events team will no longer read through the Information Book during the briefing – it is your responsibility to take the time to read the information provided online before attending the event. Moving forward, we will utilise the briefing for a more in-depth Q&A session and we request that all questions be submitted ahead of time to help us prepare.
After reading the Information Book (to be released later in the year), if you still have questions about the event that was not covered in the Info Book, there will be a link you can use to submit your questions for the briefing.
Questions will later be added into an event FAQ sheet that will be published after the briefing for anyone that cannot attend.
Swimming Australia Open Water Swimming Rules, Commercial Guidelines and Competition Regulations can be found below.
Koombana Bay
Koombana Bay, Bunbury WA
The 2026 Australian Open Water Championships will be held at Koombana Bay in Bunbury, WA.
