"Prevent dangers!"

Free swimming courses for children are in high demand

The first 250 places for the "Schwimm Kids" initiative were fully booked within minutes. Now the province of Lower Austria is increasing the number of free courses for children. When registering, be quick!

Experts are constantly sounding the alarm - it is not only in Lower Austria that fewer and fewer children can swim. This was recently demonstrated by a tragic incident at the Lutzmannsburg thermal spa in Burgenland, where an eleven-year-old girl from the district of Baden went under and had to be pulled out of the water by a swimmer who was also from Lower Austria.

Just last year, a five-year-old girl even died here after a swimming accident. Cases like these are shocking, but also show the need for the public sector to catch up. Although swimming lessons are firmly anchored in the curriculum, there is simply a lack of suitable indoor pools for learning in many places.

Swimming lessons for five to ten-year-olds
This is one of the reasons why Udo Landbauer, the state's vice-chancellor, launched the "Schwimm Kids" campaign. This year, free courses for children between the ages of five and ten are being offered for the first time at 17 locations.

Landbauer and the "Schwimm Kids"(Bild: NLK Pfeiffer)

As the first contingent was fully booked after just two minutes, a further 500 places will be offered on May 29. Course costs and admission to the swimming pool are covered by Sportland Niederösterreich.

Information on registration at: schwimmkids.sportlandnoe.at