This year’s National Sports Commission (NSC) swim camp, which commenced on Monday at the Colgrain Pool on Camp Street, has already attracted over 240 aspiring young swimmers.
Overall, that number is expected to increase significantly since, in the coming days, similar camps will start in Linden and Berbice.
The annual programme, which is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, who waived all the participating fees, caters for children from ages six to 16 and it is designed to “teach them young” the discipline of swimming.
“Our goal is to teach them young, not only for them to be competitive swimmers, but one of the main things is for them to learn a life skill. We will start with basics and we will start with streamline position, how to kick properly, and will introduce front-crawl to them. Our plan is for kids to learn to swim and try as much as possible to eliminate drowning,” national coach, Paul Mahaica, told News Room Sport on Monday.
Additionally, President of the Guyana Amateur Swimming Association, Dwayne Scott was enthused over the high interest and hoped that it also transforms into more swimmers joining clubs then into national colours.
NSC Commissioner Cristy Campbell revealed that this camp is the just start, as the National Swim academy will soon be launched and they are committed to offering more support to the core sport.