Swimming World Cup's Silk Road tour set to open in Baku with star-studded field

Azerbaijan's capital Baku will host its first-ever World Aquatics event from October 1-3, opening the 2026 World Aquatics Swimming World Cup. The series then moves to Tashkent, Uzbekistan (October 8-10), before concluding in Astana, Kazakhstan (October 15-17). According to NBC Sports, all three stops will be broadcast live on the streaming platform Peacock.

Prize money and a path to Beijing

Athletes are competing for a prize pool of $1.2 million, with additional $10,000 bonuses awarded for world records and so-called "Crowns" — sweeping an event across all three stops, as reported by Swimming World. World Aquatics notes that swimmers who finish in the top three of a final with an A-standard time at any stop will also earn a wildcard place at the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) in Beijing this December. Competitions are held in short-course (25m) pools, unlike the 50m pools used at the Olympics.

Women's field features several standout names

Hong Kong's Siobhan Haughey, a four-time Olympic medallist from the Tokyo and Paris Games, is the long-course world champion in the 200m freestyle and a four-time short-course world champion. The Netherlands' Marrit Steenbergen set a world record in the 100m freestyle in June and has collected several medals at this year's European Championships. Russia's Evgeniia Chikunova still holds the 200m breaststroke world record of 2:17.55, set in 2023. Also competing are Belgium's Roos Vanotterdijk, Ireland's Ellen Walshe, and the Netherlands' Tes Schouten, who returns to top-level competition after overcoming a serious health setback.

Men's field led by Olympic champions and record holders

On the men's side, as reported by Swimming World and NBC Sports, Australia's Cameron McEvoy — the reigning Olympic champion and world-record holder in the 50m freestyle — headlines the entries and will also contest the 100m freestyle. Also entered are American swimmers Shaine Casas and Carson Foster, China's breaststroke champion Qin Haiyang, short-course 200m breaststroke world-record holder Caspar Corbeau, Russian sprinter Egor Kornev, and South African backstroke specialist Pieter Coetze.

Swimming community in mourning

Meanwhile, the American swimming community is mourning the loss of longtime University of Arizona swimming coach Frank Busch, who died Sunday at age 75, according to Arizona Desert Swarm. During his 22-year tenure at Arizona, Busch led the men's and women's programs to national championships in 2008, and his swimmers won 49 individual and 31 relay NCAA titles. Busch also served on the U.S. Olympic coaching staff for the 2004 and 2008 Games and later served as USA Swimming's national team director.