Little is known about the relationship between real and perceived water competence among youth in the context of drowning prevention or of their perceptions of their risk of drowning. This study reports the findings of an international project entitled Can You Swim? Collegiate physical education students (n = 373) were assessed in a two-part study using an initial questionnaire survey to provide self-estimates of water competency and risk perception, followed by six practical tests in the water. Correlation coefficients between perceived and real swimming (r s = 0.369) and floating (r s = 0.583) skills were significant but only moderate in strength. No significant gender differences in real or perceived water competency were found. Significantly more males than females estimated lower risk of drowning associated with a series of aquatic scenarios (p = 0.016). The implications of these findings on drowning prevention and the need for further investigation are discussed.While the role of swimming proficiency in drowning prevention may appear axiomatic, its protective capacity is not well understood. Brenner, Saluja, and Smith (2003) have argued that increased swimming competency is almost certain to be protective in a drowning situation and, if so, then differences in swimming competency may help explain why some are at greater risk of drowning than others. The relationship between swimming competency, swimming lessons, and the risk of drowning for young children has been the subject of some inquiry (Brenner, Moran, Stallman, Gilchrist, & McVan, 2006), but little is known about this relationship with respect to young adults, one of the most at-risk groups of drowning in most developed countries.A systematic, large-scale review of childhood and youth drowning noted that even though studies have shown that swimming lessons improved the ability to dive,

Study design: To establish benchmark normative data for dive entries performed by young adults of the age range most likely to sustain a diving spinal cord injury. Data acquired from analysis of the dives performed, along with survey information, were used to determine which factors make the most contribution to the level of risk in diving. Objectives: To identify in¯uential variables which could contribute to risk of spinal cord injury for each of four types of dives. The types of dives investigated were: dive entries from deck level to tread water (Treadwater); deck level to swim 25 m (Deck); starting block height to swim 25 m (Block); and a running dive entry to swim 25 m (Running). Setting: Victoria, Australia. Methods: Ninety-®ve ®rst year university students (average age 19.9 years) performed three or four dives which were video-recorded for later analysis. Maximum depth reached was used as an indicator of risk, and velocity at maximum depth, distance at maximum depth, angle of entry and¯ight distance were measured for each dive. Participants also completed a questionnaire designed to elicit information about their swimming and diving background. Unlike previous diving studies, participants were recreational rather than competitive swimmers. They were not aware that the dive was the focal point, assuming that the researchers were investigating their swimming and treadwater ability. Results: A stepwise multiple regression was applied to predict depth for each dive condition, and demonstrated that four variables were able to account for 56% of the variance for Treadwater, 68% for Deck; 73% for Running and 79% for Block. In all conditions involving swimming after the dive (ie Deck, Block and Running), beta weights showed that distance at maximum depth had the greatest in¯uence on the depth of a dive. Flight distance and angle of entry were the next most in¯uential variables. For the Treadwater condition, beta weights showed angle of entry was the most in¯uential variable, followed by velocity at maximum depth, distance at maximum depth and swim rank. Conclusion: It is recommended that divers strive to surface in as short a distance as possible by maximising¯ight distance and aiming for a low entry angle. Implementation of steering-up techniques will assist in minimising dive depth.

Forty-six people became ill with vomiting, diarrhoea and headache within days of an outdoor swimming pool opening for the summer season in a small seaside village. During the weekend of the outbreak, 185 tickets to the pool had been sold. It was found that 34 bathers were ill, and one subject had vomited into the pool. All other cases arose after this incident. The risk of infection was greatest among those who swallowed pool water (24/28 versus 10/17, p = 0.07). Echovirus 30 was isolated from the case who vomited into the pool and from six other cases. Normal chlorine levels had not been adequate to contain the infection risk from vomitus, and, in future, pool attendants witnessing such incidents should consider closing the pool to the public and seeking advice on superchlorination.

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Benchmark data for lower limb amputees is often limited to young subjects who have had their amputations as the result of trauma. The majority of trans-tibial amputees rehabilitated are, however, elderly vascular amputees who may have different gait characteristics than their younger counterparts. Without biomechanical analyses to provide such benchmark data for this group it is not possible to compare the effects of different rehabilitation programmes, gait training regimens, or prosthetic devices. Twenty elderly vascular trans-tibial amputees rehabilitated at The Queen Elizabeth Centre, Ballarat, Australia and at least six months post-amputation were measured in respect of kinetic and kinematic parameters, and relationships between gait speed, consistency, and function were demonstrated. Further, an unexplained vertical ground reaction force pattern was demonstrated in faster, more functional amputees.

To study the teacher component of the parent-teacher-learner triad in preschool aquatics and explore compatibility of instructor messages with current drowning prevention beliefs, 133 preschool aquatics instructors were surveyed. Instructors with basic swim teacher accreditation and those with a preschool/infant instructor extension ("Extension") were compared. More Extension instructors selected "safety" as an important outcome (χ 2 = 7.907, df = 3, p = 0.048). Both instructor groups considered parental education important but Extension instructors held this view more strongly. Disturbingly, more Extension instructors disagreed that increased toddler confidence following lessons necessitates greater supervision around water (χ 2 = 4.141, df = 1, p = 0.042). To avoid such messages, instructor education should place even greater emphasis on close and constant adult supervision and counter the misconception that early age lessons protect children from drowning

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