Have any of you seen or experienced serious pool accidents, such as saves, drowning, collisions with serious consequences...? I haven't seen myself, but I've heard of some scaring collisions due to too crowded lanes. In one case, a swimmer's toe was broken; in another, a swimmer's eyeball was taken out :eek: while backstroking and another swimmer freestyling and didn't see the first swimmer (who didn't wear goggles). In another case, a swimmer drowned (cause unknown) and her body stayed at the bottom of the pool for a long time before being discovered--someone swam above and past her three times and saw her still there. It's said the lifeguards were changing shifts during that time and didn't pay attention.
Somewhere I read in the fine print of meet registration that the most common place for injuries to occur at swim meets is during warmup. So I am always especially careful in those crowded warmup lanes.
I have seen two swimmers collide at a meet when one did a flip turn and, alas, ended in the adjacent lane and hit the head of the oncoming swimmer. And my coach had her hand broken in a practice when a swimmer from an adjacent lane whacked her hand into my coach's hand. Narrow lanes and fly and backstroke are particular perils.
But I don't worry about it. If I'm doing hypoxic breathing and I need air, I take a breath. It isn't worth passing out over. And if a swimmer in my lane disappears, I look for him/her on the bottom right away! Usually they've gotten out to go to the bathroom.
Somewhere I read in the fine print of meet registration that the most common place for injuries to occur at swim meets is during warmup. So I am always especially careful in those crowded warmup lanes.
I have seen two swimmers collide at a meet when one did a flip turn and, alas, ended in the adjacent lane and hit the head of the oncoming swimmer. And my coach had her hand broken in a practice when a swimmer from an adjacent lane whacked her hand into my coach's hand. Narrow lanes and fly and backstroke are particular perils.
But I don't worry about it. If I'm doing hypoxic breathing and I need air, I take a breath. It isn't worth passing out over. And if a swimmer in my lane disappears, I look for him/her on the bottom right away! Usually they've gotten out to go to the bathroom.
