New pool bigger, faster and safer

THE new recreational complex being built in Olympia, Windhoek, will be completed at the end of this year.

Situated between Tennis, Frankie Fredericks and Sean McBride streets, it will cover 65 000 square metres. The old public pool area in Jan Jonker Street was 11 000 square metres.The complex will have a new and improved Olympic-size swimming pool and a smaller recreational pool with a baby pool.The old pool had seven lanes and was 50 metres long.It also had a scum channel, which made it a “slow pool” for competition swimmers.The new pool is 50,03 metres long and has eight lanes.The extra three centimetres is to provide for future electronic touch pads and starting blocks.The new pool will also have a rim flow, which makes it a “fast pool” and improves conditions for gala competitions.Swimmers should achieve faster times in it.The City of Windhoek will also accommodate the Underwater Hockey Club by laying out the hockey grid with special tiles at the bottom of the swimming pool.The Hockey Club will pay for these tiles.The diving community is also accommodated:one end of the pool is four metres deep.The diving club is paying for the deepening of the pool.The baby pool is only 30 cm deep, while the depth of the recreational pool will be 1,1 m at the deep end.The pool administrator will have his office above the pump house next to the big pool.The lifeguards are next to him, three metres away from the deep end of the pool.There are always two lifeguards on duty and the pool administrator is also a trained lifeguard.There will also be security guards to ensure the safety of swimmers and their possessions.The swimming pool regulations will be amended, requiring that children under the age of 13 must be accompanied by an adult.At present, they state that children under the age of six must be accompanied by an adult.The whole recreational complex is enclosed by a solid brick wall and the City of Windhoek has made provision for ample parking.The old public pool area in Jan Jonker Street was 11 000 square metres.The complex will have a new and improved Olympic-size swimming pool and a smaller recreational pool with a baby pool.The old pool had seven lanes and was 50 metres long.It also had a scum channel, which made it a “slow pool” for competition swimmers.The new pool is 50,03 metres long and has eight lanes.The extra three centimetres is to provide for future electronic touch pads and starting blocks.The new pool will also have a rim flow, which makes it a “fast pool” and improves conditions for gala competitions.Swimmers should achieve faster times in it.The City of Windhoek will also accommodate the Underwater Hockey Club by laying out the hockey grid with special tiles at the bottom of the swimming pool.The Hockey Club will pay for these tiles.The diving community is also accommodated:one end of the pool is four metres deep.The diving club is paying for the deepening of the pool.The baby pool is only 30 cm deep, while the depth of the recreational pool will be 1,1 m at the deep end.The pool administrator will have his office above the pump house next to the big pool.The lifeguards are next to him, three metres away from the deep end of the pool.There are always two lifeguards on duty and the pool administrator is also a trained lifeguard.There will also be security guards to ensure the safety of swimmers and their possessions.The swimming pool regulations will be amended, requiring that children under the age of 13 must be accompanied by an adult.At present, they state that children under the age of six must be accompanied by an adult.The whole recreational complex is enclosed by a solid brick wall and the City of Windhoek has made provision for ample parking.