Out to Swim
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Out To Swim is a swimming, water polo and synchro club for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transgendered people and their friends.[1] The club also accepts straight men and women.
Inspired by the swimming teams at the Gay Games in Vancouver in 1990, the club has gone from strength to strength, regularly competing at national and international competitions and expanding to include a synchronized swimming team as well as regularly competing in open water events.[2]
London swimmers train seven days a week with hour long coached sessions at six venues including pools in the West End, Victoria and London Bridge. Out To Swim competes at national and international events, striving to create an environment in which LGBT men and women feel welcome and comfortable.[3]
The Out To Swim Constitution (paragraph 1.2) confirms that the aims of the club are:
- To promote participation in aquatic sports among lesbian women, gay men and friends of the LGBT community, including masters Swimming and Water polo, both of which are integral parts of the club;
- To provide an atmosphere where gay and non-gay athletes can practice together in mutual understanding and support;
- To provide an opportunity for athletes of all abilities to participate in organised practices and competitions in a team atmosphere and so to achieve their own goals in their aquatic sports and;
- Make visible the contribution of lesbian and gay people to all aspects of swimming/ aquatic sports and to oppose all forms of homophobia, sexism and racism in the sport.
- Out To Swim Swimming Club is an equal opportunities club. Membership will not be restricted on grounds of gender, sexual orientation, race, disability, religion, HIV status or any other basis.
London Orca, the water polo team of Out To Swim was established in 2000 following a grant from Awards for All, a National Lottery subsidiary, which enabled Out to Swim to develop a masters water polo programme to further promote participation in aquatic sports.[4]
The team are a diverse group, with ages ranging from 20-40, with a lot of different nationalities and professions represented.[5]
The squad currently numbers over 70 players with members from the US, Canada, Australia, France, Italy, Croatia, Greece, South Africa, Ireland, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Germany, Bahamas and Spain, as well as people from all different walks of life and professions.[6]
Members of the club have competed on an international level.[7] Their first competition was held in 1997 and attracted 23 gay and straight teams from all over Europe. [8] In 2010, London Orca won a gold medal at the Gay Games held in Cologne,[9] a major milestone for the squad that has helped establish them as one of the leading LGBT water polo teams internationally.
Membership[10] of the London Orca water polo squad is currently circa 60 active players.
Although widely recognised as having originated in the UK,[11] the sport of water polo is a relatively low profile sport within the media although this situation is likely to improve to a certain extent with the Olympics in London in 2012.[12]
Out To Swim is also one of the aquatics clubs in the world that offers men the opportunity to participate in synchronised swimming. In the lead up to the 2012 summer Olympics in London, the club was instrumental in leading a campaign for men to be allowed to compete in synchronised swimming at the Olympics.[13] Synchronised swimming is one of only two Olympic sports that discriminate on the basis of gender.
References
- ^ www.gmfa.org.uk
- ^ http://www.timeout.com/london/gay-lesbian/article/1901/gay-water-polo-in-london
- ^ www.igla.org
- ^ Philip Collins (October 25, 2007). "Other lives: Ivan Bussens". The Guardian.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ http://gaydarnation.com/UserPortal/Article/Detail.aspx?ID=27658&sid=145
- ^ http://www.timeout.com/london/gay-lesbian/article/1901/gay-water-polo-in-london
- ^ Colin Nicholson (May 10, 2002). "GAY: SWIM GROUP GOES TO NEW LENGTHS; SWIMMING". The Mirror.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ "Ivan Bussens". The Times. September 12, 2007.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ http://www.games-cologne.de/en/sport/results/water+polo
- ^ http://londonorca.blogspot.com/2010/11/membership-update.html
- ^ http://www.swimming.org/britishswimming/water-polo/about-british-water-polo/
- ^ http://www.swimming.org/britishswimming/water-polo/about-british-water-polo/
- ^ [1], Irish Times, 7th July 2012.