More than 40,000 Swimmers in 24 Countries Set To Participate in Sixth World Record Attempt for the Largest Global Swimming Lesson on June 18th to Send the Message Swimming Lessons Save Lives™
Olympic Gold Medalists Rowdy Gaines, Janet Evans along with past and present members of the USASwimming National Team kick off The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ at more than 900 locations around the globe.
On Thursday, June 18th, 2015, tens of thousands of kids at more than 900 locations around the globe will attempt to splash and flutter-kick their way toward a sixth consecutive Guinness World Record™ to help combat childhood drowning by participating in The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ (WLSL).
Swimmers at hundreds of waterparks and aquatic facilities from Australia to Atlanta and Lithuania to Los Angeles are joining Team WLSL to take part in The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ (WLSL) beginning at 10 am in the Marshall Islands and traveling around the globe. This year’s event will follow the International Date Line as it reaches 10 am locally in 24 countries.
Tragically, the World Health Organization estimates that drowning is one of the top 5 causes of death for people aged 1-14 years for 48 of 85 countries it monitors.
“Research shows participation in formal swimming lessons can reduce the risk of drowning by 88% among children aged 1 to 4,” said Rowdy Gaines, Olympic Gold Medalist and spokesperson for the event. “Yet many kids don’t receive formal swimming or water safety training. Drowning is preventable and insuring every child learns to swim is a powerful step toward prevention.”
Team WLSL set its fifth Guinness World Record™ on June 20, 2014 with 36,564 participants from 22 countries. Since its inception, more than 120,000 people have participated in WLSL lessons generating more than 150 million life-saving media impressions.
Parents interested in having their kids participate in the program can find local information about all the official host locations in the US and around the globe or review swim safety tips at: http://www.wlsl.org
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Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1-14 in the US. It can and should be prevented. Teaching children to swim is a vital skill for drowning prevention along with other key water safety measures that everyone can take to stay safe in and around the water.
Check out the WLSL water safety tips and always Be Water Aware!
About The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™
The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ was created by the World Waterpark Association in 2010 as a platform to help aquatic facilities and water safety organizations work together to communicate the fundamental importance of teaching children to swim. More than forty-five different aquatics and safety organizations and publications support Team WLSL™ in their mission and encourage participation in the World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ event to help prevent childhood drowning.
