Istanbul, the biggest city of Turkey, was selected as the venue of an international sports event, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported on Sunday.

The Turkish metropolis will host the "2012 Short Course Swimming Championships" of International Swimming Federation (FINA).

During a meeting in the British city of Manchester on Saturday, FINA delegates voted in favor of Istanbul, which competed with the Austrian capital, Vienna to become the host city of the event.

Turkish State Minister Murat Basesgioglu said that "this organization will make our people like the sports of swimming more and it will help us to raise new champions,"

With this decision of FINA, Turkey has been qualified as the host country of a "Swimming World Championship" for the first time.

FINA is the international governing body of swimming, diving, water polo, synchronized swimming and open water swimming.

In January 2008, FINA announced that the Argentine city of Mar Del Plata, the Austrian capital of Vienna, the city of Hong Kong and the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul were the four finalists competing to host the 11th edition of the World Short Course Championships in 2012.

On April 12th 2008, Istanbul and Vienna raced against each other to be selected as the venue of the event.

(Xinhua News Agency April 14, 2008)