World’s Largest Swimming Lesson to return in June

The organisers of the World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ (WLSL) has advised that the global platform to promote the importance of teaching children to swim will return on 17th June 2021.

Now in its 12th year, WLSL serves as a crucial platform for the aquatics industry to build awareness of swimming lessons and with months of learn-to-swim programs having been lost in 2020, the need to provide children with access to formal swimming lessons this year is more important than ever.

Rick Root, President of the World Waterpark Association, WLSL’s founding organisation, advised “a dire consequence of the pool closures created by the 2020 pandemic is that millions of children did not have the chance to begin swimming lessons as they normally would.”

As waterparks, aquatic centres, swim schools and other aquatic venues return to a more normal operating schedule in 2021, TEAM WLSL™ is unveiling a new #21in21 campaign to encourage host locations of all sizes to get back on deck for the annual WLSL event.

Whether facilities are able to host just 21 swimmers and their parents due to social distancing protocols or 2,100 because the whole community is in full-swing, organisers are encouraging as many locations as possible to participate in this year’s program.

Root added “over the last 11 years of hosting the WLSL event, we’ve learned we can make a real difference in our communities if we all work together.

“By committing to the #21in21 campaign, we can get kids and families back on track to being water aware by participating in life-saving swim lessons.”

Aquatic facilities and trainers in the local community are encouraged to help parents connect the dots between learning to swim and staying safer in and around the water.

This year’s WLSL event will take place over the course of 24 hours at host locations that are able to reopen on Thursday 17th June 2021.

Since its inception, more than 320,000 children and adults have participated in lifesaving WLSL lessons, generating more than 2 billion media impressions about the vital importance of learning to swim.

Registration for host locations opens on 1st April 2021 at www.WLSL.org