At the 2011 FINA World Swimming Championships in Shanghai, China, there will be room for 30,000 fans on the Jinshan City Beach to watch the 5K race, the 5K Team Time Trials, 10K Olympic qualification race and the 25K marathon swim between July 19th – 23rd.

The indoor pool stadium, by comparison, holds 18,000 spectators while the diving pool and water polo natatorium both hold 5,000 fans each.

This is similar to what is expected at the 2012 London Olympics where the open water swimming venue (Hyde Park) enables thousands of more fans to watch the world’s best open water swimmers at much lower prices compared to the other aquatic venues.

The prices at the World Championships are also significantly different. While it costs 580 RMB (US$89.30) for the diving and pool swimming finals, the open water swimming ticket prices are available at a very reasonable price of 10 RMB (US$1.54).

Shanghai, a city of 18.8 million residents, is situated on the East China Sea where the Yangtze River, the longest river in China, flows into the sea. The weather is expected to be warm and moist with plenty of high temperatures, humidity and rainfall. So bring your umbrella and light clothes to watch the tightly packed action at the beach and in the pools.

Copyright © 2011 by Open Water Source