Trudy Ederle loved to swim, and she was determined to be the best. At seventeen Trudy won three medals at the 1924 Olympics in Paris. But what she planned to do next had never been done by a woman: She would swim across the English Channel in fourteen hours and set a world record.

'I love this book ...' Louise Minchin 'The perfect companion for anyone who wants to swim outdoors.' Your Healthy Living This is the ultimate practical guide to get you swimming outdoors, 365 days a year. Whether you want to take your first tentative dip in your local wild swimming spot or take on a long-distance swimming challenge, you'll find everything you need to embrace outdoor swimming and enjoy the health and wellbeing benefits it offers. Have you ever wondered what kit you need for winter swimming or how to fall in love with the cold? This book includes dedicated information about each season, ensuring you have everything you need to make outdoor swimming something you can enjoy safely all year round. Discover how to overcome your outdoor swimming fears and why becoming an outdoor swimmer can help you cope better with the ups and downs of daily life. Find out the differences between swimming in oceans, rivers and lakes, learn how to become a stronger swimmer and how to design your own training plans. Featuring case studies from people with a wide range of backgrounds who have embraced the outdoor swimming lifestyle, including people living with physical disabilities and mental health challenges, this is the book for anyone who wants to swim outdoors.

From novelty tricks in swim classes, through the Aquacades and movies, to the highly complex Olympic competitions - this history of synchronized swimming tells how the sport grew, examines the role the United States has played in its worldwide development, and describes the status of synchronized swimming in world sporting events today. Among the topics covered are competition development, development around the United States, rules and technical changes, and leadership (from volunteers to a National Office). Four appendices list major award winners, U.S. National Champions, the results of major international competitions, and U.S. participation in international events. The work boasts photographs from the first competition in 1939 to the World Championships of 2003, as well as a full bibliography.

SHORLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017

A funny and bold account of how women fought their way into the water, and of what they did once they got there

These days, swimming may seem like the most egalitarian of pastimes, open to anyone with a swimsuit - but this wasn't always the case. In the 19th century, swimming was exclusively the domain of men, and access to pools was a luxury limited by class. Women were (barely) allowed to swim in the sea, as long as no men were around, but even into the 20th century they could be arrested and fined if they dared dive into a lake. It wasn't until the 1930s that women were finally, and reluctantly, granted equal access. This is the story of the women who made that possible, a thank-you to the fearless 'swimming suffragettes' who took on the status quo, fought for equal access, and won.

Part social history, part memoir, Swell uncovers a world of secret swimming in the face of these exclusions and shines a light on the 'swimming suffragettes'. It celebrates some amazing achievements, some ridiculous outfits and some fantastic swimmers who challenge the stereotypes of what women are capable of. It's also the story of how Jenny eventually came to be a keen swimmer herself.

Swell is a joyful hymn to the sport and an exploration of why swimming attracts so many women. Ultimately, it is a book dedicated to our brilliant swimming foremothers who collectively made it possible for any woman to plunge in with alacrity, anywhere we choose.

'Dip into this beautiful book, and understand the healing nature of wild swimming before you have even taken that first plunge' MIRANDA HART 'This book is a joy!' JO WHILEY, BBC Radio 2 'Wow! What a book. This is an emotional description of what we wild swimmers know and love. So familiar are the stories that I feel I know them all personally; if I haven't uttered the words myself, I have probably thought them often. Lived it, loved it. Fabulous.' BETH FRENCH, marathon swimmer and inspirational speaker Wild swimming changes lives. The thrill of plunging - or dipping a toe - into open water brings joy, confidence, adventure and friendship. It can wash away stress and sadness, pain and grief. Here water is a great healer, a place to feel gloriously, elementally alive and in touch with yourself, with others and with nature. Full of life-affirming personal stories and breath-taking images of scenery and swimmers, Taking the Plunge celebrates the remarkable wild swimming community. Now you too can immerse yourself in its energy, courage and irresistible joie de vivre! With practical advice on how wild swimming works and how to get started - from what you'll need (cossie and a smile!) to where best to go (rivers, oceans, lochs, lakes . . .) - there s never been a better time to take the plunge.

In 1927, Mercedes Gleitze became the first British woman to swim the English Channel, transforming her from a humble working-class typist into one of the most iconic sportswomen of her age. Fiercely independent and with no financial backing, Mercedes was at the forefront in the struggle to break through the existing prejudices against women taking part in sport. Over a ten-year period and a large number of pioneering, record-setting swims around the world, she achieved celebrity status, helped make Rolex famous, and was regularly in the spotlight of the worldwide press. While pursuing her dream she led by example, showing that women deserved recognition for their sporting achievements - though she herself was very modest about her success, barely talking about it even to her own children. Here, Mercedes' daughter documents the remarkable story of her early life and subsequent swimming career, using Mercedes' personal records and pictures, recollections from acquaintances and newspaper articles of the time.

Crowood Sports Guides provide sound, practical advice that will help make you a better sportsperson whether you are learning the basic skills, discovering more advanced techniques or reviewing the fundamentals of your sport. Featured in Swimming - Crowood Sports Guides are information boxes containing Key Points and Top Tips; sequence photographs and detailed diagrams in colour. There is a thorough analysis of the four strokes (Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle). Starts and turns analysis, including the individual Medley are covered and valuable advice on techniques, coaching, drills, training, tapering, nutrition and competition psychology is given. There is also an introduction to rules and equipment.

The fourth edition of this classic book provides a comprehensive treatise on the design and construction of swimming pools, both public and private. Significantly revised, it covers planning, materials, design, construction and finishing, water circulation and treatment, energy conservation, maintenance and repairs. This is a standard book for all civil engineers who need to design and construct swimming pools, and a useful reference on the design of water-retaining structures.

eBook available with sample pages: 020347788X

From more powerful strokes to quicker turns, propel yourself to improved times with "Complete Conditioning for Swimming."

This multidimensional training program uses fitness assessments to tailor strength, endurance, and flexibility exercises to each swimmer's individual needs.

Dave Salo, coach of Olympic medalists Rebecca Soni, Lenny Krayzelburg, Aaron Peirsol, Amanda Beard, and Jason Lezak, and Scott A. Riewald, performance specialist for the U.S. Olympic Committee, have teamed up to create a comprehensive program that provides you with the following tools to improve your times:

- Exercises and drills for each stroke

- Event-based workouts and programs

- Dryland training

- Tapering for peak performance

- Year-round conditioning plans

- Nutrition before, during, and after swim meets

In addition, the 80-minute DVD takes you to the pool and into the gym to demonstrate the drills and exercises used by the sport's elite. "Complete Conditioning for Swimming" is simply the best guide to preparing your body for competitive success.

Rip currents are among the most dangerous coastal hazards for the bathing public, and contribute to the highest portion of beach rescues all over the world. In order to help life guards in planning and preparing rescue resources so that casualties can be minimized, information about where and when rip currents may occur is needed. This can be provided by a predictive tool which combines meteorological forecasts, hydrodynamic models and remote-sensed observations. In this thesis, a methodology which can provide rip current forecasts for swimmer safety is developed and tested for Egmond aan Zee beach in the Netherlands. The approach uses the numerical model system CoSMoS, combined with daily estimates of nearshore-scale bathymetry obtained from a system called cBathy, which infers depths by estimating wave celerities from video imaging. Furthermore, in order to gain more knowledge on occurrences of rips at Egmond beach, a numerical study on the kinematics of rip currents and the safety implications for swimmers is presented as well. Coupling the video bathymetry estimates with CoSMoS in forecast mode shows that dangerous rips were correctly predicted. This thesis demonstrates the potential application of the proposed system for providing rip current forecasts at Egmond aan Zee.

An immersive, unforgettable, and eye-opening perspective on swimming—and on human behavior itself.

We swim in freezing Arctic waters and piranha-infested rivers to test our limits. We swim for pleasure, for exercise, for healing. But humans, unlike other animals that are drawn to water, are not natural-born swimmers. We must be taught. Our evolutionary ancestors learned for survival; now, in the twenty-first century, swimming is one of the most popular activities in the world.

Why We Swim is propelled by stories of Olympic champions, a Baghdad swim club that meets in Saddam Hussein’s palace pool, modern-day Japanese samurai swimmers, and even an Icelandic fisherman who improbably survives a wintry six-hour swim after a shipwreck. New York Times contributor Bonnie Tsui, a swimmer herself, dives into the deep, from the San Francisco Bay to the South China Sea, investigating what it is about water that seduces us, despite its dangers, and why we come back to it again and again.

This title presents a story of race riots, shrinking swimsuits, and conspicuous leisure. From nineteenth-century public baths to today's private backyard havens, swimming pools have long been a provocative symbol of American life. In this social and cultural history of swimming pools in the United States, Jeff Wiltse relates how, over the years, pools have served as asylums for the urban poor, leisure resorts for the masses, and private clubs for middle-class suburbanites. As sites of race riots, shrinking swimsuits, and conspicuous leisure, swimming pools reflect many of the tensions and transformations that have given rise to modern America.

The exhilarating true story of Trudy Ederle, the first woman to swim the English Channel, and inspire a “wave of confidence and emancipation� for women in sports (Parade). By age twenty, at the height of the Jazz Age, Trudy Ederle was the most accomplished swimmer in the world. She’d won Olympic gold and set a host of world records. But the greatest challenge remained: the English Channel. Only a few swimmers, none of them women, had ever made the treacherous twenty-one mile crossing. Trudy’s failed first attempt seemed to confirm what many naysayers believed: No woman could possibly accomplish such a thing. In 1926, Ederle proved them wrong. As her German immigrant parents cheered her, and her sister and fellow swimmer Meg helped fashion both her scandalous two-piece swimsuit and leak-proof goggles, Trudy was determined to succeed. “England or drown is my motto,� she said, plunging into the frigid Channel for her second attempt at the crossing. Fourteen hours later, two hours faster than any man, and after weathering a gale and waves that approached six-feet, she stepped onto Kingsdowne Beach as the most famous woman in the world. Based on years of archival research that unearthed Ederle’s memory from obscurity, Young Woman and the Sea brings to life the real Trudy Ederle, the challenges that came with her fame, and the historic mark her achievement made for all women athletes who followed. 

Rip currents are among the most dangerous coastal hazards for the bathing public, and contribute to the highest portion of beach rescues all over the world. In order to help life guards in planning and preparing rescue resources so that casualties can be minimized, information about where and when rip currents may occur is needed. This can be provided by a predictive tool which combines meteorological forecasts, hydrodynamic models and remote-sensed observations. In this thesis, a methodology which can provide rip current forecasts for swimmer safety is developed and tested for Egmond aan Zee beach in the Netherlands. The approach uses the numerical model system CoSMoS, combined with daily estimates of nearshore-scale bathymetry obtained from a system called cBathy, which infers depths by estimating wave celerities from video imaging. Furthermore, in order to gain more knowledge on occurrences of rips at Egmond beach, a numerical study on the kinematics of rip currents and the safety implications for swimmers is presented as well. Coupling the video bathymetry estimates with CoSMoS in forecast mode shows that dangerous rips were correctly predicted. This thesis demonstrates the potential application of the proposed system for providing rip current forecasts at Egmond aan Zee.

Recounted with his usual level of meticulous historical research, Rod weaves an easily readable account of the build-up to and implementation of Operation Desecrate 1 - the raid undertaken to destroy Japanese ships and aircraft in the lagoons of Palau. He uses his intimate knowledge of shipwrecks to reveal in glorious detail each of the 20 major Japanese WWII shipwrecks lying at the bottom of the Palauan lagoons today. On 30th March, 1944 Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters made an Initial fighter sweep of the lagoon to destroy Japanese air cover. Simultaneously Grumman Avenger torpedo-bombers dropped mines and successive group strikes of torpedo bombers and dive-bombers sank the shipping and destroyed the airfields. Palau was neutralised as a Japanese naval and air base in a repeat of the same Task Force 58 raid, Operation Hailstone, on Truk Lagoon 1,000 miles to the east just six weeks earlier. A number of long-lost wrecks have recently been relocated including a Japanese freighter filled with depth charges and Army helmets. This was found in 1989 but remained unidentified until now - after painstaking research Rod reveals her identify for the first time in the book. Each wreck is covered in detail and is supported by underwater photography and by fabulous illustrations by renowned artist Rob Ward. The shipwrecks of Palau are now revealed.

While the effects of pressure change are readily quantified in physics, chemistry, and engineering applications, the physiology, medicine, and biology of pressure changes in living systems are much more complicated. This complex science translated to technical diving is discussed in a five-part series, with each topic self-contained and strategically developed in relationship to diving, spanning many disciplines and focusing on a number of technical areas. A suite of application exercises is provided at strategic points in the text. Additional material focusing on diving data, statistical correlations, underwater tests, and risk is included.

From Okinawa to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, find the ultimate travel itineraries for above and below water in this inspiring and comprehensive guide to the worlds 50 best scuba diving destinations. In this illuminating compendium, National Geographic travel expert Carrie Miller and dive master Christian Taylor reveal the 50 top destinations for both scuba divers and their vacation buddies. The result of a yearlong research journey, this beautifully illustrated guide offers unique itineraries with a wide range of options for divers of various levels, snorkelers, or landlubbers, providing the perfect vacation to satisfy everyone on your trip. Featuring tips on what to do, what to see, and where to be on land and at sea, each location includes top-rate shared experiences from unique hiking adventures to day-trip opportunities and sailboat tours, as well as solo excursions for when divers and land-based travellers choose to go their own ways. From the white sand beaches of Fregate Island and the rocky coastline of Croatia to the city of Laguna Beach and Australia's Great Barrier Reef, these wanderlust itineraries include: Diving with marine iguanas in the Galapagos Islands Learning a unique form of martial arts in Thailand Visiting the Maoi of Easter Island above and below water Swimming with sharks in Fiji Planting coral reef gardens in Mo'orea Diving among salmon in Alaska A black-water night dive off the coast of Kona, Hawaii And so much more! With crucial tips on where to go, what to do, and where to stay-plus how to preserve these precious destinations-this is the ultimate guide for divers, adventurers, and everyone in between.

Water fitness classes are more popular than ever-and with good reason, since they are fun, accessible, and effective. But how do you, as an instructor or trainer, keep them fresh? How do you continue to challenge your participants, who have varied interests and goals? Water Fitness Progressions has the answers. Water Fitness Progressions is designed to help you create programs that gradually, and systematically, progress your participants. Inside you will discover the following: * Over 150 ready-to-use lesson plans * Variations of the shallow-water and deep-water exercises offer over 590 possibilities * Specific programming for shallow and deep water * Suggestions for introducing equipment to a workout * High-intensity and low-intensity training plans * Tips for using water resistance to improve strength With step-by-step instructions, detailed photos, and expert advice, Water Fitness Progressions is the comprehensive, yet practical, resource that you've been waiting for. With an entire year of plans, you will spend more time teaching and less time preparing.

1001 Outdoor Swimming Tips by Calum Maclean is a light-hearted and informative guide to all kinds of outdoor and wild swimming. This is no standard instruction manual - it is much more useful than that. This is a huge collection of small tips to make a real difference to your outdoor swimming, whether you're planning your first forays into swimming outdoors or enjoy icy swims in the depths of winter - this book will take you through everything you need to know. The vast range of topics covered includes everything from biosecurity and the safety of others to cold-water swimming, recovery, night swimming, swimming with children, the essential gear you'll need, training and how to get that perfect underwater photo. Whether you're a wild swimming novice or have plenty of experience in water, Calum's entertaining and knowledgeable advice will inspire you and help to enrich your time in the water.

Covering a time of great social and technological change, this history traces the development of the four classic aquatic disciplines of competitive swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo, with its main focus on racing. Working from the beginnings of municipal recreational swimming, the book fully explores the links between swimming and other aspects of English life society including class, education, gender, municipal governance, sexuality and the Victorian invention of the sports amateur-professional divide. Uniquely focused on swimming -often neglected in analytic sports histories- this is the first study of its kind and will be an important landmark in the establishment of swimming history as a topic of scholarly investigation. This book was previously published as a special issue of the International Journal of the History of Sport.

This book recounts the efforts over many years to dive wrecks that contained treasure in one form or another. The often prolonged and sometimes dangerous expeditions tell of dives to many ships that were wrecked while carrying tons of gold or other valuables. Many of the wrecks came to lie at great depths which demanded considerable diving expertise using rebreathers which allowed longer dives to be performed.The authors are both diving experts and in addition to the accounts and historical pictures they have added their own photography to convey to the reader the challenges of the dives undertaken. The technical demands were considerable, from adjusting the camera housing to accommodate the depth to diving at particular times of the year because many of the wrecks were situated in areas of high seas and extreme currents. Many of these wrecks have been the subject of concerted efforts from salvage teams but success could never be assumed.It took several years to visit and photograph the wrecks mentioned in the book which provides a fascinating account of the vessels and their treasure, and the challenges of diving in what can be a dangerous environment. Each entry provides details and a brief history of the vessel and the means of its demise, enhanced by a modern diving account with photographs. As such the book will be of great interest to all divers whether active or armchair, and to anyone with an interest in maritime/military history.

This book contains 100 workouts that focus on improving general swimming efficiency.The workouts are specific to each of the competitive swimming strokes: freestyle, backstroke, breastroke, and butterfly. Together, the 100 workouts blend swimming drills and conditioning sets that total up to 2,000 yards. Each workout is accompanied by a Focus Point, allowing swimmers to zero in on stroke improvements by eliminating drag, improving feel for the water, and swimming in a core-centered manner. Swimmers at any level will improve their swimming technique, efficiency, and performance with Swim Fast!

Even though swimming is the closest thing to a perfect exercise you can name, too few people experience its full benefits. That's because most find themselves fighting to stay afloat, struggling for air, and feeling exhausted after just a lap or two, all of which makes this perfect exercise frustrating, laborious, and complicated. For the past fifteen years, veteran swim coach Terry Laughlin has been teaching adults how to swim better - and enjoy it more - by using his simple and original techniques. Laughlin turns traditional swimming beliefs inside out as he explains that it's technique - not athletic ability - that makes a strong swimmer. Laughlin teaches 'Fishlike Swimming,' focusing on slipping through the water rather than using muscle to overpower it. The key is working with the water, not against it - learning to swim ever faster and farther without losing a sense of flow, grace, economy, and balance.

Following the successful previous book, this new and expanded edition is the most informative and comprehensive book available, particularly for the diving fraternity, and will be essential for divers wishing to experience the rich underwater heritage around the 28 Farne Islands. However, it is not only a diver's guide to the Farnes underwater and the surrounding wrecks, as it will also be a must for visitors to the islands with the wealth of information on the area's history and wildlife. The author has dived every one of the 178 sites and explains what can be seen at each one. This includes the little-known underwater Nature Reserve, north of the North Wamses Island in the Outer Farnes. For ease of location, WGS84 GPS coordinates have been introduced in this new edition for many of the sites. The book also benefits from a vast amount of technical detail and history about the 50 or so extra shipwrecks that have been added to this new edition, many of which can be easily reached from Seahouses and Beadnell harbours. Another major plus for divers who are unfamiliar with the islands' tides, currents, general depths, wrecks and marine life is the author's star rating for each site, so that divers will waste no time in selecting the right and most suitable dive site. Other interesting features include the sometimes bizarre but fascinating history of the islands and the local villages of Bamburgh, Seahouses and Beadnell, together with information about the local seabirds, wildlife, seals and marine life.