Aquatics

Lesson 2

Aquatics

 Are also known as water sports, or anything played in water. Water sports are fun and popular forms of
recreational activity. Activities such as going to the beach or having swimming parties are enjoyable for most
people in general. Other importance of water sports include inculcation of competitive values (for the swimmer
athlete), therapeutic values (for people injuries), physiological values (swimming can induce an increase in
cardiovascular endurance), and safety (sea and flood casualties can be avoided if more people know how to
swim).

 There are different kinds of water sport. There are sports played in water, underwater, and on water.

Sports played in water include:

 Swimming -is the self-propulsion of a person through water or another liquid, usually
for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs,
the body, or both. Humans can hold their breath underwater and undertake rudimentary locomotive swimming
within weeks of birth, as an evolutionary response. Swimming is consistently among top public recreational
activities, and in some countries, swimming lessons are a compulsory part of the educational curriculum. As a
formalized sport, swimming features in a range of local, national, and international competitions, including
every modern summer Olympics.
 Triathlon- is a multiple-stage competition involving the completion of three continuous and sequential
endurance disciplines. While many variations of the sport exist, triathlon, in its most popular form,
involves swimming, cycling, and running in immediate succession over various distances. Triathletes compete for
fastest overall course completion time, including timed "transitions" between the individual swim, cycle, and run
components. The word "triathlon" is of Greek origin from τρεῖς or treis ("three") and ἆθλος
or athlos("competition").
  Water aerobics

(waterobics, aquatic fitness, aquafitness, aquafit) is the performance of aerobic exercise in fairly shallow water
such as in a swimming pool. Done mostly vertically and without swimming typically in waist deep or deeper water, it is a
type of resistance training. Water aerobics is a form of aerobic exercise that requires water-immersed participants. Most
water aerobics is in a group fitness class setting with a trained professional teaching for about an hour. The classes focus
on aerobic endurance, resistance training, and creating an enjoyable atmosphere with music. Different forms of water
aerobics include: aqua Zumba, water yoga, aqua aerobics, and aqua jog.
  Water polo- is a competitive team sport played in the water between two teams. The game consists of four
quarters, usually of eight minutes, in which the two teams attempt to score goals and throw the ball into their
opponent's goal. The team with the most goals at the end of the game wins the match. Each team made up of
six field players and one goalkeeper. Except for the goalkeeper, players participate in both offensive and
defensive roles. Water polo is typically played in an all-deep pool seven feet (or two meters) deep.

Special equipment for water polo includes a water polo ball, which floats on the water; numbered and
coloured caps; and two goals, which either float in the water or are attached to the side of the pool.
  Synchronized swimming

(renamed as Artistic swimming), is a hybrid form of swimming, dance, and gymnastics, consisting of swimmers
performing a synchronised routine (either solo, duet, mixed duet, free team, free combination, and highlight) of
elaborate moves in the water, accompanied by music.

Synchronized swimming demands advanced water skills, and requires great strength, endurance, flexibility,
grace, artistry and precise timing, as well as exceptional breath control when upside down underwater. During routines,
swimmers may not touch the bottom of the pool.
  Snorkeling

is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped
breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. Use of this equipment allows the snorkeler to observe underwater
attractions for extended periods with relatively little effort and to breathe while face-down at the surface. Snorkeling is
a popular recreational activity, particularly at tropical resort locations. The primary appeal is the opportunity to
observe underwater life in a natural setting without the complicated equipment and training required for scuba diving. It
appeals to all ages because of how little effort there is, and without the exhaled bubbles of scuba-diving equipment. It is
the basis of the two surface disciplines of the underwater sport of finswimming.
Underwater Sports activity include:

 Diving

is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, usually while performing acrobatics.
Diving is an internationally recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-
competitive diving is a recreational pastime. Diving is one of the most popular Olympic sports with spectators.
Competitors possess many of the same characteristics as gymnasts and dancers, including strength,
flexibility, kinaesthetic judgment and air awareness. Some professional divers were originally gymnasts or dancers as
both the sports have similar characteristics to diving.
  Scuba diving

is a form of underwater diving where the diver uses a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (scuba)
which is completely independent of surface supply, to breathe underwater. Scuba divers carry their own source
of breathing gas, usually compressed air, allowing them greater independence and freedom of movement than surface-
supplied divers, and longer underwater endurance than breath-hold divers. Scuba diving may be
done recreationally or professionally in a number of applications, including scientific, military and public safety roles, but
most commercial diving uses surface-supplied diving equipment when this is practicable.
  Freediving

-is a form of underwater diving that relies on divers' ability to hold their breath until resurfacing rather than on
the use of a breathing apparatus such as scuba gear. Besides the limits of breath-hold, immersion in water and exposure
to high ambient pressure also have physiological effects that limit the depths and duration possible in freediving.
Sports played on water include:

 Surfing

is a surface water sport in which the wave rider, referred to as a surfer, rides on the forward or deep face of a
moving wave, which is usually carrying the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitable for surfing are primarily found in
the ocean, but can also be found in lakes or in rivers in the form of a standing wave or tidal bore. However, surfers can
also utilize artificial waves such as those from boat wakes and the waves created in artificial wave pools.

The term surfing refers to the act of riding a wave, regardless of whether the wave is ridden with a board or
without a board, and regardless of the stance used.
  Boat racing

is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as
having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other water-
borne craft for as long as such watercraft have existed.

 Dragon Boat Racing

is a human-powered watercraft. Dragon boats are the basis of the team paddling sport of dragon boat racing, a
watersport which has its roots in an ancient folk ritual of contending villagers, which has been held for over 2000 years
throughout southern China. . But the history of dragon boats in competition reaches as far back as the same era as the
original games of Olympia in ancient Greece.
  Rowing

is often referred to as crew in the United States, is a sport whose origins reach back to Ancient Egyptian times. It
involves propelling a boat (racing shell) on water using oars. By pushing against the water with an oar, a force is
generated to move the boat. The sport can be either recreational for enjoyment or fitness, or competitive, when
athletes race against each other in boats. There are a number of different boat classes in which athletes compete,
ranging from an individual shell (called a single scull) to an eight-person shell with coxswain (called a coxed eight).
  Banana boat

(or water sled), is an unpowered, inflatable recreational boat meant to be towed. Different models usually
accommodate three to ten riders sitting on a larger, main tube and resting their feet on two laterally flanking tubes
which stabilize the boat. The main tube is often yellow and banana-shaped. Some models have two main tubes.

 Water skiing

is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of
water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires sufficient area on a smooth stretch of water, one
or two skis, a tow boat with tow rope, three people (depending on state boating laws), and a personal flotation device.
In addition, the skier must have adequate upper and lower body strength, muscular endurance, and good balance.
  Sailing

employs the wind—acting on sails—to propel a craft on the surface of the water (sailing
ship, sailboat, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), over a chosen course, which is often part of a larger plan of navigation. A course
defined with respect to the true wind direction is called a point of sail.

Conventional sailing craft cannot derive power from sails on a point of sail that is too close into the wind. On a
given point of sail, the sailor adjusts the alignment of each sail with respect to the apparent wind direction (as perceived
on the craft) to mobilize the power of the wind.
  Fishing

is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include
hand-gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping. Fishing may include catching aquatic animals other than fish,
such as molluscs, cephalopods, crustaceans, and echinoderms. The term is not normally applied to catching farmed fish,
or to aquatic mammals, such as whales where the term whaling is more appropriate.
  Kayaking

is the use of a kayak for moving across water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the
paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits
facing forward, legs in front, using a double-bladed paddle to pull front-to-back on one side and then the other in
rotation. Most kayaks have closed decks, although sit-on-top and inflatable kayaks are growing in popularity as well.
  Kitesurfing

is a surface water sport combining aspects

of wakeboarding, snowboarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, skateboarding and sailing into one extreme sport. A
kiteboarder harnesses the power of the wind with a large controllable power kite to be propelled across the water on a
kiteboard similar to a wakeboard or a small surfboard, with or without footstraps or bindings.

Kitesurfing is a style of kiteboarding specific to wave riding, which uses standard surfboards or boards shaped
specifically for the purpose.

 Windsurfing

is a surface water sport that combines elements of surfing and sailing. It consists of a board usually 2.5 to 3
meters long, with displacements typically between 60 and 250 litres, powered by wind on a sail. The rig is connected to
the board by a free-rotating universal joint and consists of a mast, boom and sail. The sail area generally ranges from
2.5 m2 to 12 m2 depending on the conditions, the skill of the sailor, the type of windsurfing being undertaken and the
weight of the person windsurfing.
  Flyboard

is a brand of hydroflighting device which supplies propulsion to drive the Flyboard into the air to perform a sport
known as hydroflying.

A Flyboard rider stands on a board connected by a long hose to a watercraft. Water is forced under pressure to a
pair of boots with jet nozzles underneath which provide thrust for the rider to fly up to 15 m (49 ft) in the air or to dive
headlong through the water down to 2.5 m (8 ft).
  Rafting and white water rafting

are recreational outdoor activities which use an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other body of water. This is
often done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water. Dealing with risk and the need for teamwork is often a
part of the experience. This activity as a leisure sport has become popular since the 1950s, if not earlier, evolving from
individuals paddling 10 feet (3.0 m) to 14 feet (4.3 m) rafts with double-bladed paddles or oars to multi-person rafts
propelled by single-bladed paddles and steered by a person at the stern, or by the use of oars. Rafting on some sections
of rivers is considered an extreme sport, and can be fatal, while other sections are not so extreme or difficult.
  Jet Ski

-is the brand name of a personal watercraft manufactured by Kawasaki, a Japanese company. The term is
often used generically to refer to any type of personal watercraft used mainly for recreation, and it is also used as a verb
to describe the use of this type of water vehicle. Jet Skis typically can carry 1-2 people seated in a configuration like a
typical bicycle or motorcycle.
  Parasailing

-also known as parascending or parakiting, is a recreational kiting activity where a person is towed behind a
vehicle (usually a boat) while attached to a specially designed canopy wing that reminds one of a parachute, known as a
parasail wing. The manned kite's moving anchor may be a car, truck, or boat. The harness attaches the pilot to the
parasail, which is connected to the boat, or land vehicle, by the tow rope. The vehicle then drives off, carrying the
parascender (or wing) and person into the air.

 Yachting

-refers to the use of recreational boats and ships called yachts for sporting purposes. Yachts are different from
working ships mainly by their leisure purpose.