Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Olympics

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education Volume 2 | Number 1 Article 6 2-1-2008 Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Olympics Stathis Avramidis European Lifeguard Academy, Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare Recommended Citation Avramidis, Stathis (2008) "Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Olympics," International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education: Vol. 2 : No. 1 , Article 6. DOI: 10.25035/ijare.02.01.06 Available at: https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare/vol2/iss1/6 This Education Article is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@BGSU. It has been accepted for inclusion in International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education by an authorized editor of ScholarWorks@BGSU. Avramidis: Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Oly Education International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, 2008, 1, 47-55 © 2008 Human Kinetics, Inc. Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Olympics Stathis Avramidis In open-water venues, the need for lifeguards is well appreciated around the world. Unfortunately, there are still people in countries with a less well-developed sense of safety who believe that swimming pools do not present risks and therefore that the lifeguards are unnecessary (Avramidis, 2003). For those believing that a swimming pool is merely a harmless “small sea” and therefore a safe place without the potential for injury or death, the answer to the question “Do we need lifeguards during the Olympic Games?” is often a resounding No! As one means of refuting that attitude, one need only consider a remarkable incident that occurred on the ninth of Greg Louganis’s 11 preliminary dives in the 3-m springboard competition during the Olympic Games of Seoul on September 19, 1988. Louganis lacerated his head on the diving board and hit the water with a great splash after attempting a reverse 2.5-somersault pike. Fortunately, the accident led only to a cut that required temporary sutures and five stitches. Recall, however, that several years later the incident took on added meaning when the world’s best diver revealed that he had been HIV-positive during those Olympic Games. In his autobiography, he admitted that he was panicked that he might cause someone else harm. He had wanted to warn the doctor who treated his head injury without wearing gloves, but he did not. Fortunately, the physician tested negative for HIV in 1994. Everything was so mixed up at that point: the HIV, the shock and embarrassment of hitting his head, and an awful feeling that it was all over (Brown, 2007). From this single emergency incident that could have led to compression, concussion, spinal injury, bleeding, or an HIV infection, one should appreciate that even during Olympic Games, aquatic emergencies can and do occur. Presumably each host country for an Olympic Games tries to learn the lessons of the past for organizing better and safer games. One would expect that 16 years after the Louganis incident in the Olympic Games of Athens 2004, safety precautions would dominate the aquatic venues. There was a widely held belief that Greece was not going to even be able to organize the Games in time, much less attend to safety issues. Fortunately, this belief was proven misguided. All the aquatic facilities were ready on time (Figure 1). The many human resources were always keen to help, smiling, and exceeding the expectations of those who wondered if Greece would be able to provide enough volunteers for the Games to run smoothly. The question of whether the lifeguards who had to supervise the swimming pools of the Athens Olympic Athletic Center were equally ready was still in doubt, however. The author is with the European Lifeguard Academy, Kastella Pireas 18533, Greece. Published by ScholarWorks@BGSU, 2008 47 1 International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, Vol. 2, No. 1 [2008], Art. 6 b (a) (b) (c) (d) Figure 1 — Venues for the four pool-sport events of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. (a) Swimming and water polo. (b) Water polo. (c) Synchronized swimming. (d) Diving. Observations in Athens 2004 This report aims to provide a first-person account regarding all the swimming pool aquatic events at both the test events and the actual 2004 Athens Olympic Games from a safety perspective and to provide a potential guide to help promote optimal practices, as well as avoid similar mistakes, at future Olympic Games. Lifeguard Staff Selection The lifeguards for the Games were selected by the organizing committee of each aquatic sport (e.g., swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, water polo). Initially it was thought appropriate to employ lifeguards who were able to work at the test event of the specific sport, the training days before the Games, and during the actual Olympic Games. Later, it was found that some lifeguards were unwilling to work on all these occasions, so others had to be hired to provide lifeguard coverage. Some lifeguards who served the water polo or competitive swimming venues were not very strong and were much shorter than the athletes (e.g., several lifeguards were only 1.65 m [5 ft 5 in.] tall and some water polo players were 2 m [6 ft 7 in.] tall). Their lack of size and strength caused doubts by some spectators and organizers about their ability to tow and initiate a successful rescue of the bulky, tall athletes who they supervised. Considering the fact that not all the 48 https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare/vol2/iss1/6 DOI: 10.25035/ijare.02.01.06 2 Avramidis: Lifeguard Operations: Summary of Practices at the Athens 2004 Oly Lifeguarding at the 2004 Athens Olympics 49 lifeguards had rescue tubes available, one can assume that it would be difficult to tow very large athletes if it became necessary. Although as far as it is known there is not any scientific study relating the body sizes of the rescuer and the casualty with the outcome of the rescue, my practical experience has shown that thin and short lifeguards are likely to struggle while towing tall and heavy casualties, and therefore, what might initially sound discriminatory, in fact, is not. Number of Qualified Lifeguards There were only one or two lifeguards on duty at any aquatic venue during the Games (Figure 2). For example, there was one lifeguard for the competitive Figure 2 — Lifeguards on duty at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Published by ScholarWorks@BGSU, 2008 3 International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, Vol. 2, No. 1 [2008], Art. 6 50   Avramidis swimming events, one at the water polo pool, one at the synchronized swimming venue, and two at the diving well. This scarcity of lifeguard staff did not allow the opportunity for frequent enough guard rotations, with few breaks for meals, to use the toilet, or for staffing replacements when someone was ill. Each aquatic event worked almost independen (...truncated)