Landes. "They learn safety rules while having fun": 200 children learn about swimming in the ocean and lakes

On June 11 and 12, the beaches of Messanges and Lake Léon hosted Water Safety Day, an event dedicated to raising children's awareness of water safety, drowning prevention and the transmission of sporting values.

The initiative, led by the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, was in Landes for a second time. The Landes Mixed Swimming Pool Management Association (SMGBL), through Stéphanie Barneix, ambassador of the foundation, organized the Water Safety Day, which is aimed at children aged 8 to 12. It teaches children how to learn the right reflexes for staying safe in the aquatic environment through a series of workshops.

Over two mornings, Wednesday 11 and Thursday 12 June, more than 200 children from the Landes region took part in a series of events at the ocean and at Lake Léon, focusing on eight fundamental values: solidarity, respect, inclusion, optimism, discipline, team spirit, altruism and kindness.

A selection of high-level athletes led the workshops, including Valérie Nicolas, Jérôme Fernandez, Alexandra Lux, Marie Goyeneche, Laurie Phipps, Julien Lalanne, Dan Nécol, Alix Schorch and Régis Sonnes.

Pascal Granero, director of the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, was part of the trip: "These two days of lifesaving initiation in the Landes are an opportunity to introduce more than 200 children to lifesaving and the right actions. The foundation is focused on drowning prevention, and we came to the Landes for the second consecutive year. Next week, we have the same thing in Monaco. We are also calling on ambassadors to pass on the values ​​of sport." Unlike last year, the princess was not on the trip this time.

Stéphanie Barneix also emphasized the values ​​developed by each workshop: "Solidarity, inclusion, altruism, kindness, the names of the workshops are not always easy for schoolchildren to understand: we start playing together to help them understand the value."

"Kindness, for example, is six children playing tourists, and six children playing lifeguards," she continues. "Swimming in a natural environment isn't the same as in a pool, so we wanted to welcome children who aren't necessarily used to it. The result is that they learn safety rules while having fun."

Camille Chauvet, a teacher at the Jules-Ferry school in Saint-Pierre-du-Mont, accompanied around twenty students: "Being able to raise awareness among our students, who all know how to swim in a pool but who are not necessarily in coastal communities, allows us to remind them of the safety rules before the summer, both in the ocean and on the lakes."

Swim only between the flags, report to the lifeguard if you see someone in difficulty, call 196 if you witness a distress situation at sea, pay attention to people on the shore, who sometimes don't know how to swim, so many mantras to apply with your feet in the water.

Schoolchildren from Saint-Pierre-du-Mont, Linxe, Lesgor, as well as from Léon, Anglet, and students from the Biarritz IME (Institute for Early Childhood Education) all jumped into the water to take on the challenges. Each participant left with an educational kit consisting of a T-shirt, a rash guard, a cap, a towel, a wristband, a bag, sunscreen, a participation certificate, and a tracking sheet.