THE first world record has fallen but racing has yet to begin at the world short course swimming championships in Gothenburg. The 1,000 ton pool itself is the record breaker, built and filled with nearly a million litres of water in under three days in the Scandinavium indoor arena.

"It's a world record in erecting a pool. We have spent 67 1/2 hours in erecting and filling it," Peter Wangmark, owner of the Swedish company which performed the feat, said the day before the start of the championships.

They began work on April 7th, installing wall sections five metres wide and 1.8 metres high of stainless steel from Sheffield, on a concrete foundation held together by iron rods.

The local emergency services pumped water from the nearby 50 metre Valhallabadet pool, filling the eight lane, 25 metre championship tank to its 922,400 litre capacity in nine hours.

They needed to move at a sprint pace befitting he racers at these four day championships because other events jostle for time.

"Normally there's an ice hockey rink on this site. It's been iced since September last year until April 5th, two days before we started," Wangmark said.

"We shall have 72 hours to clear away all this. They have started to prepare for an international horse show, so it's quick changing.

"First the water will be dechlorinated, then they will pump it into the river. There's a river only 300 metres from here. The fire brigade does the pumping. They have expertise in flood relief."

Wangmark's Swedish company and British subsidiary have built about 250 stainless steel pools in northern Europe, including one in London with a moveable glass bottom, which can be raised to form a dance floor.

The championship pool would cost (only) about 4 1/2 million Swedish krona (£375,000) to buy, Wangmark said. But the world championship organisers have hired it for about £85,000.

A similar temporary pool was constructed on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach for the last world short course championships in 1995. The water polo pools for the 1994 Rome world championships and 1995 European championships were built along the same lines.

"I've heard from a lot of people in the swimming world that this is the way for the future because it's much more interesting for the public," Wangmark said.

Divers from the emergency services carry out a daily inspection of the bottom of the pool which rests on a 110 ton sand bed, is insulated by a layer of polystyrene slabs and covered by PYC plastic.

It leaks, Wangmark freely admits but there is no cause for alarm.

"There are about 2,000 screws and also plastic is not absolutely watertight, like skin is not absolutely watertight," he said.

"You get moisture but the leak is next to nothing. It's one litre for 24 hours. There's about 1,000 times more water splashing over (the sides) than getting through the pool."