Last day of outdoor swimming

Swimming season ends in Salzburg – He didn’t miss a day

Franz Heiling also swam his laps on the last day of swimming. One pool was open on Wednesday. Due to the bad weather, there were no crowds in the water.(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

Bad weather brought the Salzburg swimming season to a close on Wednesday. Right in the middle of it instead of just being there: permanent guest Franz Heiling (68). He defies all weathers and emphasizes: "Swimming keeps me fit." Naturally, he also swam his lengths at the end of the pool. . . 

Even rain, wind and temperatures of around 15 degrees Celsius couldn't deter him. For Franz Heiling, there was never a second thought of returning to Salzburg's Aya outdoor pool on Wednesday. "I was there on the first swimming day of the year, and then of course on the last," grins the 58-year-old.

Heiling wasn't put off by the weather(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

And there was hardly a day this year when the Salzburg native wasn't in the pool. "I was ill for a week, otherwise I always swam my lengths," he says. Because: "It keeps me fit." He doesn't care about the weather. "I can't influence it anyway," he says.

Deputy manager Markus Windischbauer noted the water temperature one last time.(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

On the very last day of swimming, Heiling was not alone in the pool. A number of determined people enjoyed the outdoor pool finale to the full - even if the sunbathing lawns were, of course, completely deserted. But: "The pool was never empty for more than 30 minutes," says Markus Windischbauer, deputy operations manager at the Aya pool. The water temperature was at least 20 degrees Celsius for the finale. At 7 p.m. sharp, however, it was finally time to close the pool!

Record-breaking outdoor pool year in Salzburg
The other outdoor pools in the city of Salzburg have been closed for several weeks now. According to the city, the visitor numbers "are impressive". From April 19 to September 30, 209,869 people came to the three outdoor pools in Leopoldskron, Volksgarten and Alpenstraße. That's more visitors than last year - even though the start of the season literally fell through. Surprisingly, from September 16 to September 30, 1424 Salzburgers still took the plunge into the cool water.

What will regular swimmer Franz Heiling be doing in the outdoor pool-free period until next spring? "Swimming, of course," he laughs. "I'll just move over to the Aya indoor pool."