Swimming New Zealand

What Swimming New Zealand does

Swimming New Zealand (formerly the New Zealand Amateur Swimming Association) is a nonprofit National Sports Organisation founded in 1890 that governs competitive pool and open water swimming in New Zealand. Headquartered at 14 Antares Place, Auckland, the organization administers the full athlete pathway — from learn-to-swim programmes and the Registered Swim School accreditation scheme, through competitive club and secondary school championships, to elite High Performance programmes including the Aquablacks, HP Plan Podium LA28, and Aquablacks Project B32 targeting Olympic and Paralympic success at the Los Angeles 2028 Games. It also delivers AUSTSWIM teacher training, technical official education, coaching development, water safety services (Watermark Water Testing), and a Para swimming programme, serving a domestic base of athletes, coaches, technical officials, swim schools, clubs, and parents/whanau.

The organization runs a calendar-driven community and event-led GTM motion, reaching members through affiliated swim clubs, registered swim schools, school competitions, national championships, and digital channels (website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, email newsletter). Its commercial offering is a mix of recurring membership/affiliation fees for athletes, coaches, officials, clubs, and swim schools; one-time and unit-priced merchandise (t-shirts, pins, history books, training slates, medal hangers) sold via a Wix-based e-commerce storefront at swimmingnz.org/shop and routed through the Arena Water Instinct partner store; educational materials and certificates (SwimSmart, SwimSkills, Stroke Certificates, Challenge Reward Stickers, AUSTSWIM manuals); and presumably Sport NZ and government grants tied to its core partnership with Sport NZ. Technology architecture is administrative rather than productized: Wix for web/merchandise, JotForm for police vetting and health & safety incident reporting, TeamLine for competition merchandise, Sport Tutor for official education, and Arena Water Instinct for branded apparel distribution.

Governance is led by President Ron Clarke and Chair Debbie Pattullo, with CEO Steve Johns directing strategy; the operating team includes dedicated Heads of High Performance (Graeme Maw), Participation/Competitions/Engagement (Dale Johnson), Coaching, Education/Water Safety, Finance, Digital Marketing, and separate Head Coaches for Olympic (Graham Hill) and Paralympic (Simon Mayne) pathways. Strategic partnerships include Sport NZ (core funder/strategic), World Aquatics (international federation), AUSTSWIM (teacher training), Swim Coaches & Teachers NZ (coach development), Good Sports Movement (Sport NZ initiative), and Arena Water Instinct (apparel/merchandise). Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed.

Name

Swimming New Zealand

Legal name

Swimming New Zealand

Website

https://swimmingnz.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1890

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Swimming New Zealand is the nonprofit national sports organisation governing competitive pool and open water swimming in New Zealand, delivering learn-to-swim education, club and national championships, and elite High Performance programmes targeting Olympic and Paralympic success from its Auckland headquarters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Governance & Athletic Development

NAICS

Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (713940)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Aquatics Programs (Pools, Swim Lessons, Lifeguarding) (EDALAIAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Open Water Swimming Events (OWS Races, Swim Challenges) (MPAKAIAF)

Keywords

• Competitive swimming governance
• Learn to swim education
• Aquatic sports organization
• Swim school accreditation
• Swimmer development programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Auckland

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. E-commerce merchandise sales: The organization operates an online shop selling supporter merchandise including t-shirts, history books, training equipment, certificates, and commemorative items. Products are priced in NZD and include standard shipping or collection from the national office.
2. Membership and affiliation fees: Swimming New Zealand maintains a membership structure for athletes, coaches, officials, clubs, and swim schools. The organization processes police vetting for volunteers and staff as part of member protection requirements.
3. Education and training programs: The organization facilitates AUSTSWIM teacher training courses and issues certificates for swimming levels (SwimSmart, SwimSkills, Stroke certificates). These educational offerings support the learn-to-swim sector.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Swimming New Zealand operates as the National Sports Organisation governing competitive pool and open water swimming in New Zealand. It delivers Learn to Swim programmes, manages the National Championships and Open Water competitions calendar, runs High Performance pathways for Olympic and Paralympic athletes (Aquablacks, HP Plan Podium LA28), and operates education and accreditation services including Registered Swim School accreditation, AUSTSWIM teacher training, Technical Officials education, Coaching development, Watermark water testing, and Police Vetting for member protection.

Product overview

Swimming New Zealand operates as a national sports organisation offering a unified portfolio of services centred on competitive pool and open water swimming. The core offerings include Learn to Swim programmes, competitive swimming events and championships, High Performance programmes (including HP Plan Podium LA28 and Aquablacks Project B32 for Olympic/Paralympic pathways), and Para Swimming programmes. Supporting infrastructure consists of: Education services (AUSTSWIM Teacher Training, Registered Swim School Programme, Technical Officials Education pathway via Sport Tutor, and Coaching Education via Swim Coaches & Teachers NZ); Safety services (Watermark Water Testing, Police Vetting Service); and merchandise (Swimming NZ Supporters T-shirts, History Book, Training Slates, Pins, Medal Hangers, and educational certificates including SwimSmart, SwimSkills, Stroke Certificates, and Challenge Reward Stickers). The Aquablacks programme represents elite athletes who have competed internationally at pinnacle competitions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Aquablacks: The elite athletes who have represented New Zealand internationally at Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Commonwealth Games or World Championships (Long Course).
• HP Plan Podium LA28
• Performance Pathway - Aquablacks Project B32
• Registered Swim School Programme
• Watermark Water Testing

Products and services

• Learn to Swim Programme
• High Performance Programme
• Aquablacks
• Registered Swim School Programme
• AUSTSWIM Teacher Training
• Watermark Water Testing
• Technical Officials Education
• Coaching Education
• Police Vetting Service
• Para Swimming Programme
• National Championships and Events
• Swimming New Zealand Supporters T-shirt (Men's) Limited edition supporters t-shirt celebrating the 2024 Olympics. Regular fit, mid weight 180 GSM, 100% combed cotton. Available in sizes XS-3XL, priced at $40.00 NZD.
• Women's Swimming New Zealand Supporters T-shirt Limited edition supporters t-shirt celebrating the 2024 Olympics for women. Available for collection from SNZ Office in Mairangi Bay, priced at $40.00 NZD.
• Swimming New Zealand History Book A comprehensive history of Swimming New Zealand from 1890-2004, priced at $25.00 NZD per book.
• Swimming New Zealand Training Session Slate Essential training tool for competitive swimmers; works well wet or dry in combination with a 6B pencil (not included), priced at $10.00 NZD per slate.
• Swimming New Zealand Pin Official Swimming New Zealand commemorative pin, priced at $6.00 NZD per pin.
• Swimming Medal Hanger Metal medal wall hanger (80cm x 22cm) for displaying and protecting medals. Screw to any wall, door or wardrobe, priced at $125.00 NZD.
• AUSTSWIM Manual - Teacher of Swimming & Water Safety AUSTSWIM Teacher of Swimming and Water Safety Manual — a resource to support all swim teachers, priced at $75.00 NZD per manual.
• Challenge Reward Stickers 30 pack of reward stickers for Challenge Certificates, available at bronze, silver and gold level to recognise swimmers for improvement over time, priced at $10.00 NZD per 30-pack.
• SwimSkills Certificates 10 pack of SwimSkills certificates awarded when specific strokes and distances have been achieved with good technique, priced at $15.00 NZD per 10-pack.
• Stroke Certificates 10 pack of stroke certificates following the skills certificate; swimmers challenged to achieve times for competitive event distances with Gold, Silver and Bronze times, priced at $15.00 NZD per 10-pack.
• SwimSmart Certificates 30 pack of SwimSmart certificates corresponding to five levels of learn-to-swim development, each with skills to complete before awarding, priced at $15.00 NZD per 30-pack.

Quantifiable outcome

• National team athletes have achieved Olympic medals (Danyon Loader double gold at Atlanta, silver at Barcelona)
• +1 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Arena Water InstinctminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorArena Water Instinct is listed as a partner for SNZ Supporter Merchandise, providing branded swimming merchandise and apparel through their online store linked from Swimming NZ's website.
• Sport NZcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSport NZ (Sport New Zealand) is the national sports agency that provides strategic direction and support. Swimming NZ participates in the Balance is Better initiative led by Sport NZ, which is an evidence-based philosophy to support quality sport experiences for young people.
• AUSTSWIMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAUSTSWIM is an Australian swim teaching organization whose courses and qualifications are delivered by Swimming NZ for the New Zealand market. Swimming NZ uses AUSTSWIM materials and training for teacher certification in New Zealand.
• Good Sports MovementminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwimming New Zealand is one of the initial sports to join the Good Sports movement, which promotes positive sporting experiences for children and young people through educating parents, coaches, and sport leaders.
• World AquaticscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorld Aquatics (formerly FINA) is the international governing body for aquatic sports. Swimming NZ operates under World Aquatics rules and regulations, with NZ officials selected for the World Aquatics Officials List for international appointments.
• Swim Coaches & Teachers NZcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwimming NZ partners with Swim Coaches & Teachers NZ in delivering coaching courses and education programs for coaches throughout New Zealand.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• British Swimming: National federation for aquatic sports in the UK, providing a similar governance, performance-pathway and learn-to-swim reference point for a comparable Anglosphere federation.
• Swimming Ireland: National federation for swimming in Ireland with a comparable population scale to NZ and similar learn-to-swim, performance-pathway, and club-affiliation offerings.
• Swimming Canada: National federation governing competitive swimming in Canada - a small-population market analogous to NZ, with similar learn-to-swim, high-performance, and club-affiliation structures.
• Swimming Australia: National federation governing competitive swimming in Australia and the source of AUSTSWIM, which SNZ uses for teacher training in NZ. Highly comparable as a fellow Oceanian national swimming NSO with elite pathways and member-club structure.
• Swimming South Africa: Another small-to-mid population national swimming federation facing similar talent-pool and funding constraints as SNZ; useful comparable for elite pathway and club membership models.

Regional players

• Water Safety New Zealand: NZ national water-safety organization closely aligned with SNZ's education and prevention mandate - a regional partner/peer in the same geographic market.
• Surf Life Saving New Zealand: Domestic peer operating in the aquatic sector with overlapping water-safety, lifesaving, and education missions - directly competes for youth participation in the NZ market.

Others

• Sport New Zealand: Government national sports agency providing strategic direction and funding to SNZ; functions as an enabler and policy partner shaping SNZ's operating environment.
• New Zealand Olympic Committee: Umbrella body that SNZ feeds into for Olympic representation; an ecosystem participant rather than direct competitor, but materially shapes SNZ's high-performance funding and athlete pathways.

Broad incumbents

• USA Swimming: The largest national swimming federation globally; serves as a broad-incumbent benchmark for scale, governance, and high-performance architecture, although operating in a much larger market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SwimmingNZ
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1TK9az26ZBjPT4SvS_kQNQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/swimmingnewzealand
• Instagraminstagram.com/swimming_nz
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swimming-new-zealand

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles24 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swimming New Zealand