Overcome fears. This is one of the objectives of the swimming lessons given in the ephemeral pool, near the Parc des sports de la Briqueterie, in Bagnolet in Seine-Saint-Denis. As part of the 2024 Olympic Games, the “Savoir Nager en Seine-Saint-Denis” program has selected four towns in the department – Clichy-sous-Bois, Villetaneuse, Sevran and Bagnolet – to allow 2,000 children and adults to learn to swim free until August 29. The slots are available via the savoirnager.org platform, at the rate of 10 sessions per person.
This Thursday morning, it’s time for the “aquatic ease” course for 4-6 year olds. The group has four children, the parents seem more motivated than the toddlers. “We have already had recourse to baby swimming, but the closing of the swimming pool [des Malassis] during confinement and this summer [pour travaux] left us with nothing. When I saw that there was going to be an ephemeral pool, I jumped at the chance, admits Zumrad, mother of little Lionel. It is essential that my son learns to swim. At his side, Nadia drops off Mohammed, 4 years old. “The first time he saw the swimming pool, he said to me: ‘it is huge’. This morning, the little boy is not in a good mood. He grumbles: “The water is too cold, I don’t like the pool. I don’t like water. “But his mother warns him:” We will come back tomorrow. “
Rapid progress
Tony is one of the two lifeguards who supervise the children. “The profiles are very varied. Some are afraid of water, others are curious. This morning alone, we had two children at ease and two others who were afraid. In this kind of case, the group is separated. “Among them, Colis, 5, is a real fish in the water, an” adventurer “, says Tony. Others need more time. “The first day, Lionel cried for forty-five minutes. “Today, he comes back and asks in a low voice to jump” on his own. »He takes a little momentum, he dashes off then starts again, under the supervision of Lucas, the second lifeguard. When asked when he comes out of the water if he is happy, he whispers: “Yes. On the fourth day, he is no longer afraid.
Learning to swim is an educational issue at the heart of the Savoir Nager en Seine-Saint-Denis project. If the offer is a success on the Internet, with a fill rate of 100% until the end of July, the slots are free from time to time, parents tending to outbid without knowing that it is possible to register. with two slots per day spread over a week. An advantage for teachers, since the frequency of lessons, more important than in a club, allows “to make a lot of progress”, underline the lifeguards. Now it’s time for 7-12 year olds.
36 basins for 1.6 million inhabitants
Behind this initiative, it is the sad results of a territory which stands up. “Seine-Saint-Denis is lacking in sports facilities,” notes Mona Bellil, municipal councilor responsible for sports development in Bagnolet. “Our goal is to fight statistics. “In the department,” one in two children arrives at college without knowing how to swim. ” An observation to be reconciled with the number of swimming pools available: 36 pools for 1.6 million inhabitants in the department. “This represents a pool for 44,000 people, calculates the elected. We hope that new equipment will emerge with the 2024 Olympic Games. “
Free sessions allow as many people as possible to benefit from them. “You just have to show up in swimsuits and flip flops,” explains Mona Bellil. Swimming caps and swimming goggles are given at the entrance. The aim is to play down contact with water and prevent the risk of drowning, which mainly affects children under 13. Teens and adults also have access to these swimming lessons after 6 p.m. “The other day we had an aquaphobic lady,” Tony says. Together, we helped her overcome her fear of water “