Make A Splash Wrapping Up National Tour With Star-Studded Events in Los Angeles, Long Beach

LOS ANGELES, California, May 30. THE USA Swimming Foundation will bring the sixth annual USA Swimming Foundation’s Make a Splash Tour presented by Phillips 66 to Los Angeles and Long Beach on May 30-31, 2014, respectively. The national tour will feature appearances by the new USA Swimming Foundation’s Ambassadors: Olympic Gold Medalists Nathan Adrian, Janet Evans and Anthony Ervin; as well as appearances by Olympic Gold Medalists Rowdy Gaines, Jason Lezak, Jessica Hardy, and two-time Olympian Chloe Sutton. The Olympic athletes will participate in water safety events, information sessions and swimming lessons with children.

The USA Swimming Foundation’s Make a Splash initiative is a national child-focused water safety campaign with a focus on teaching every child in America how to swim. USA Swimming Foundation and Phillips 66 want to educate parents, communities and civic leaders about the importance of learning to swim and being safer around the water. Information will be provided on resources available to area residents, including information on free and low-cost swimming lessons at local pool partners.

To date, more than 2 million kids have received the lifesaving gift of swim lessons through the USA Swimming Foundation’s ‘Make a Splash’ Local Partner Network comprised of more than 600 qualified lesson providers across the nation.

“We are proud to have our USA Swimming Foundation Ambassadors and Olympians participate in the Make A Splash Tour presented by Phillips 66 throughout the weekend,” said USA Swimming Foundation Executive Director Debbie Hesse. “The Make A Splash Tour has been impactful with national media appearances and local community events to educate and engage families. We are thankful to Phillips 66 and USA Swimming Foundation donor’s commitment to helping us spread the life-saving message of learn-to-swim and water safety.”

On May 30, 2014, USA Swimming Foundation will hold a water safety information session and photo and autograph signing with Olympic Gold Medalists Nathan Adrian, Rowdy Gaines, Anthony Ervin, and Janet Evans at Dr. Julian Nava Middle School in Los Angeles, CA.

On May 31, 2014, USA Swimming Foundation will hold a community water safety festival with Olympic Gold Medalists Anthony Ervin, Janet Evans, Jason Lezak, Jessica Hardy, Rowdy Gaines and two-time Olympian Chloe Sutton at the Belmont Plaza Outdoor Pool and Beach in Long Beach, CA. The event will include games and activities for children and parents, story times, prizes and a meet and greet with the Olympic athletes. The event will also include the presentation of a proclamation from the Long Beach Mayor’s office naming May 31st “Water Safety Day.”

WHEN/WHERE:
Friday May 30, 2014
4:00 PM PST
Dr. Julian Nava Middle School
School of Arts and Culture / Business and Technology School
1420 East Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, California 90011

Saturday, May 31, 2014
10:00 AM PST — 2:00 PM PST
Community Water Safety Festival
Belmont Plaza Outdoor and Beach
4320 Olympic Plaza, Long Beach, CA 90803

For more information about the USA Swimming Foundation and Make a Splash, visit:
www.usaswimmingfoundation.org/makeasplash, Facebook.com/SwimFoundation, Twitter: @SwimFoundation

Sobering Drowning Statistics:
Approximately 10 people drown every day in the U.S., according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and at least one in five fatal drowning victims are children younger than 14. Only 13 percent of children who come from a non-swimming household will ever learn to swim, according to a national research study by the USA Swimming Foundation and the University of Memphis.

Seventy percent of African American children, 60 percent of Hispanic/Latino children and 40 percent of Caucasian children have little to no swimming abilities. African American children drown at a rate nearly three times higher than their Caucasian peers, the CDC reports.

Drowning is also a silent killer; most young children who drowned in pools were last seen in the home, had been out of sight less than five minutes and were in the care of one or both parents at the time, according to the Present P. Child Drowning study.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World. To reach our audience, contact us at newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com.

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