The benefits of the project “Swim Without Fear” are mainly in two directions: benefits for children – future swimmers and their parents and family and benefits for swimming clubs and their swimming coaches / instructors.

Benefits for children:

– Overcoming the innate fear of water in most children at an early age (4-6 years). Because according to most experts, real swimming training can start at the age of 6-7 and earlier organized activities have basically the same effect – overcoming the fear of water. In a playful and fun environment, children, feeling safe with their parent (regardless of father or mother), will gradually relax in the water, leaving behind fears of an unfamiliar environment

– Mastering very basic swimming skills – after overcoming the fear of water comes the turn of games in the water – with a ball, with a belt, with an inflatable mattress. And with them – the gradual immersion of the head under water and release of air (this is one of the most important initial skills for future young swimmers)

– Taking a proper stand in the water. The games lead to something else – the children step forward, holding the hands of the parents and performing basic exercises. This helps to gradually occupy a proper standing position in the water. Which is the basis of the real swimming training.

Benefits for parents and family:

– The meaning of the vacation around a water area – pool, sea, lake… Along with the rest, practicing the basic exercises several times a day will give additional emotions to children and parents and will ultimately bring children closer to the unusual environment, such as water

– Saving costs for fees for swimming instructors at an early age. As mentioned – “swimming training” in kindergartens for children between 4 and 6 years is much more like “bathing” and playing than a real activity. Because at this age children have very little concentration and practically do not understand what the coach / trainer wants from them if he requires the performance of more complex exercises. What can be done for 2-3 years of activities in kindergarten can be achieved in 4-5 vacations at the same time by the water area. And with the money saved from the initial “training” in swimming, the family can go on one or two more vacations at the same time.

Benefits for sports clubs:

– In general, sports clubs do not rely on such very early training, while they rely on training, which starts at 6-7 years and gradually, growing up and starting to train more and more – the child is getting closer to real sports. And when the basic skills of overcoming the fear of water, standing in the water and exhaling under water are mastered earlier, the coaches have the real task – to teach children to swim, and to teach them correctly. At the age of 6-7 children should be ready to start their education, and this is much better and more reasonable to do by the parents during the family vacations.

– Apart from the focus of sports clubs on actual sports training and the challenges of sports training, when children come to the club, they would be already with a cultivated love of water and without fear. Then, in addition to the fact that training is faster and smoother, it turns out that the talents of certain children in swimming can be discovered and developed earlier. Indicator: Sport clubs to be reached: 200 in project lifetime.

Main #SWIM outputs:

• Research in different countries in relation to local needs;

• Printed edition of the handbook “Swim Without Fear”, which will help parents and organizations and will be distributed in kindergartens, schools, hotels and swimming pools;

• Online platform where an online edition of the “Swim Without Fear” handbook and guidelines videos will be published. All of them will be translated in 3 languages: English, Bulgarian and Croatian.

• Test swimming event in Sofia, Bulgaria in the end of the project during the Final meeting in order to demonstrate the methods proposed in the handbook “Swim Without Fear”.