THE Gauteng provincial government has joined forces with Swimming South Africa to teach school children and young people how to swim.
The provincial government hopes the Learn to Swim programme will help eradicate drowning in pools and dams.
"We have lifeguards working at various swimming pools in the Gauteng province where school children are taught how to swim," said Gauteng sport MEC Lebogang Maile.
"There is a myth that black people cannot swim," he said. "I'm saying it is not true because we have top black swimmers like Thabang Moeketsane and Malesela Molepo.
"We need to intensify our programme of Learn to Swim so that we will have two or three black youngsters qualifying and doing well at the Olympics in 2016 or 2020.
"We need to take advantage of the successes of Chad le Clos and Cameron van der Burgh at the recent Olympics. I was happy to hear Cameron and Chad volunteering to assist in the development of swimming in black residential areas on their return from London."
The provincial government plans to help municipalities in Gauteng refurbish pools.
Maile said: "We want people to access swimming facilities in their own areas by being able to walk to the pool. The same applies to other sporting codes."
Getting our kids into the water
THE Gauteng provincial government has joined forces with Swimming South Africa to teach school children and young people how to swim.
The provincial government hopes the Learn to Swim programme will help eradicate drowning in pools and dams.
"We have lifeguards working at various swimming pools in the Gauteng province where school children are taught how to swim," said Gauteng sport MEC Lebogang Maile.
"There is a myth that black people cannot swim," he said. "I'm saying it is not true because we have top black swimmers like Thabang Moeketsane and Malesela Molepo.
"We need to intensify our programme of Learn to Swim so that we will have two or three black youngsters qualifying and doing well at the Olympics in 2016 or 2020.
"We need to take advantage of the successes of Chad le Clos and Cameron van der Burgh at the recent Olympics. I was happy to hear Cameron and Chad volunteering to assist in the development of swimming in black residential areas on their return from London."
The provincial government plans to help municipalities in Gauteng refurbish pools.
Maile said: "We want people to access swimming facilities in their own areas by being able to walk to the pool. The same applies to other sporting codes."
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