Swimming Australia has locked in a big-hitting backer just 17 months out from the Rio Olympic Games, with mining giant Hancock Prospecting becoming the sport's principal partner for the next two years.
The arrangement will carry Swimming Australia through this year's World Championships in Russia to Rio and beyond as the sport tries to rebound from a difficult showing in London 2012 and return to the top of the world rankings.
Australia failed to win an individual gold medal in London and after a dramatic fallout has started the rebuild, with the end game a return to being the world's premier swimming nation by 2020.
With rival programs pouring vast funds into their swimmers and facilities, the partnership is good news for the Australians, who will be spearheaded by sprint stars Cate Campbell and James Magnussen when they take on the world in Kazan in August.
Swimming Australia chief executive Mark Anderson said the move was a welcome one after steady performance improvements over the past 18 months, including a positive showing at the Pan Pacs on the Gold Coast last year.
Australia won 26 medals at that event as well as 57 medals at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, while swimmers like Campbell, the Brisbane freestyler, stand to be among the faces of the Olympics should they continue their current form.
Swimming Australia has also partnered with the Georgina Hope Foundation, which provides young swimmers with assistance to follow their ambitions in and out of the water. That partnership also runs until the end of 2016.
Australia's elite swimmers are tapering in a camp at Thredbo but the year will heat up soon after, with the national championships to be held in Sydney in April and the world titles to follow in Russia in August.
