Swimming Is Not Just a Sport. It’s a Survival Tool

As an Olympic medalist and world champion swimmer, swimming has been a constant in my life for many years. But it wasn’t always this way. At 5 years old, I nearly drowned in a crowded Pennsylvania water park. Thanks to a lifeguard’s quick action and immediate CPR, I was saved. My parents immediately enrolled me in formal swimming lessons, changing the trajectory of my life.

Tragically, there are far too many stories like mine that don’t have the same happy ending. Those stories are much more common in diverse communities, and I have made it my mission—as a swimmer, as a dad, and as a water safety advocate—to change that.

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In December 2024, the World Health Organization released its first-ever report on drowning prevention, noting more than 7.2 million people, many children, could die by drowning by the year 2050 if current trends continue. In 2024, the CDC reported that drownings are on the rise for the first time in decades. These statistics are tragic. They are too high.

That said, when we look at them further, there are shocking disparities when it comes to children from underserved communities with 64% of Black children and 45% of Latino children having few to no swimming skills.

Read More: Why Swimming Is So Good For You

In many predominantly Black communities, swimming is often seen as an unnecessary skill—something reserved for the wealthy, white elite, those who have a pool or live by the ocean. We must break this misconception. Swimming isn’t just a luxury or sport—it’s a life-saving skill.

Research indicates that Black children and their parents are three times more fearful of drowning than Caucasian children and their parents. This fear is not unfounded. Many of these families, for generations, have been excluded from learning the life-saving skill of swimming due to systemic barriers—whether that’s a lack of access to pools, inadequate swim programs, or simply not knowing where to start. This legacy of fear and inadequate training is passed through generations—with 78% of Black children and 62% of Latino children lacking proficient swimming skills when their parents have no or low swimming competency.

But the thing is: Swimming is not just a sport—it’s a survival tool. Swim lessons and water safety education can dramatically change the trajectory of children’s lives—like they did mine. Studies show that formal swim lessons reduce the risk of drowning by 88%.
This is why we must invest in community-driven efforts to make swimming accessible to all children. This means funding local swim programs and the work of organizations like Every Child a Swimmer, which provides swim scholarships and fosters partnerships with swim lesson providers like Goldfish Swim School (where I am a water safety ambassador) to provide low and no-cost swim lesson access to families in need.

It’s not enough to just talk about the problem. We need action. Schools, cities, community organizations, and more must prioritize water safety education in diverse neighborhoods. For too long, the lack of swimming proficiency in Black and Hispanic communities has been overlooked. We can no longer afford to ignore this issue when children’s lives are at stake.

We need to make sure every child knows how to swim, and that no child has to face the fear of drowning. Educating all of today’s kids will help break the cycle and empower the generations to come.

As someone who has spent my life in the water, I know firsthand that learning to swim is not just about staying safe—it’s about confidence, empowerment, and overcoming fear. It’s about breaking down barriers and rewriting what’s possible. It is why I enrolled my own young son in swim lessons as an infant, and why I celebrate each new swimming milestone—including his recent achievement to swim unassisted the full width of the pool!

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