A little
bit of swimming's history
Archaeological and other evidence
has given us the belief that swimming has been practiced as
early as 2500 BC. In the earliest
times, it took place in Egypt, Assyria, Greece, and Rome.
In Rome, swimming was part of
the education of elementary age boys. They also built the first swimming
pools, and in the first century BC, they built the first heated swimming
pool.
In Japan, swimming dates back
to the first century BC. There were many swimming events that took place
in Japan before it was opened to the Western world.
In the Pacific areas, swimming
was taught to children by the time they could walk.
In ancient Greece, there were
few races, but they are famous for having one of their best boxers swim
as part of his training.
Many places in Europe explain
their lack of swimming on their fear that it causes you to catch an infection
that someone has who swam in the same water before you. They formed their
first swimming organization in 1837, which mostly took place in London,
which by then had 6 indoor pools all with diving boards. Later, in 1869,
London founded the Amateur Swimming Association, which inspired many more
swimming associations in Europe from 1882-1889.
Australia held a swim meet in
1864(and annually from then on), in which the first swimming championship
happened during the 440-yard race.
In the United States, swimming
didn't become a recognized sport until 1888. The Amateur Athletic Union(AAU)
founded it. Then, in 1909, the Federation Internationale de Natation Amateur(FINA)
was founded.
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