Roger Smith Passes Away

IT is with great sadness that FINA announces the sudden death on April 29, 2006 of its Honorary Member Roger Smith (AUS). Mr. Smith, 73 years old, dedicated most of his life to Swimming, assuming successful roles both at national and international levels.

He had served almost every position on the Australian Swimming Union, Australian Swimming Incorporated and Swimming Australia Incorporated (including the Australian presidency and honorary secretary on two occasions) and had seen in action the great swimmers of his country – from Dawn Fraser and Murray Rose, through Shane Gould and on to Susie O’Neill, Kieren Perkins, Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett.

He had been elected to the FINA Bureau (as Vice-President) from 1996 to 2005 after serving as the Oceania representative on the FINA Technical Swimming Committee. In 2005, Mr. Smith was named FINA Honorary Member. He was awarded the FINA Gold Pin in 1995.

His last appearance at a FINA competition happened in the recent 8th FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) in Shanghai (CHN) from April 5-9, 2006.
FINA expresses its most sincere condolences to the family of Roger Smith and to all the Aquatic community in Australia.

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