1998 World Aquatics Championships

The 8th FINA World Championships or the 1998 World Aquatics Championships were held from 8 to 17 January 1998 in Perth, Western Australia. The championships features competition in all five of FINA's disciplines: Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Synchronised swimming and Open Water Swimming. The main venue for competition was Challenge Stadium, which hosted all disciplines except the Open Water events. This was also the venue for the opening ceremony, featuring performances by Human Nature and David Helfgott supported by a large choir drawn from local choral societies. The televised performance was marred when the choir, unable to hear their own music due to the fireworks exploding overhead, lost ensemble cohesion.

Local athlete Michael Klim was named as the leading male swimmer of the meet, winning the 200 m freestyle, 100 m butterfly, 4 × 200 m freestyle, 4 × 100 m medley relay, as well as silver in the 100 m freestyle, 4 × 100 m freestyle relay and bronze in the 50 m freestyle. Ian Thorpe became the youngest ever male to become world champion when he won the 400 m freestyle event aged 15 years and three months.