New research shows a high level of satisfaction amongst people taking part in swimming.

Overall, 79.1 per cent of swimmers questioned by the Sport England survey said they were happy with their sport, a higher satisfaction level than those in football, hockey and netball.

Regular participants from over 40 sports, including swimming, gave an overall satisfaction rating for their sport in the report. The participants were asked to rate swimming across ten areas - including coaching, exertion and fitness, officiating, facilities and value for money.

The sport with the highest levels of satisfaction was Taekwondo (85.9%), followed by orienteering, judo and golf.

The survey was conducted on 44,390 people across England who were general participants in sports, affiliated club members and those from a talent pool (a sample of athletes on the sport’s talent pathway).

CLICK HERE for headline results. More detailed results and analysis will be published in July.

-ENDS-

For more information contact the ASA PR Manager Sharon Rose on 01509 632262, 07876 652318 or email sharon.rose@swimming.org

The ASA is the English National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water, and Synchronised Swimming. It organises competition throughout England, establishes the Laws of the Sport and operates comprehensive certification and education programmes for Teachers, Coaches and Officials as well as its renowned Learn To Swim Awards scheme. The ASA supports 1,220 affiliated swimming clubs through a National/Regional/County structure. The ASA aims to ensure everybody has an opportunity to learn to swim.

About British Gas
British Gas, the biggest energy supplier in the country, has the lowest carbon intensity of any of the major UK energy suppliers in terms of tonnes of CO2 emitted per megawatt hour of electricity supplied to customers.  The company is one of the biggest investors in renewable power generation, principally offshore wind. Its recently completed Lynn and Inner Dowsing development, off the Lincolnshire coast, is the UK's largest offshore wind development. British Gas is committed to energy efficiency.  Our Energy Savers Report provides free expert advice on how you can cut energy use in the home and, in turn, save money.  So far, the report has shown over 2 million people how they could make an average saving of £175 a year.  To complete a report go to www.britishgas.co.uk/energy-efficiency/energy-savers-report

About Kellogg's
The Kellogg Company was founded in 1906 and today produces 40 different cereals including popular brands such as Special K, Cornflakes and Coco Pops, and 56 different snacks including brands such as Nutri-Grain and Special K snacks. Kellogg's has been a partner of the ASA and British Swimming for 13 years, sponsoring the Kellogg's ASA Awards and enabling over 50,000 people to take up swimming as part of an active lifestyle.

About Speedo®
The world’s leading swimwear brand, Speedo® is passionate about life in and around the water, creating revolutionary new technologies, designs and innovations. Supporting swimming from grass-roots through to elite level, including the phenomenal Michael Phelps, Speedo® is owned by Speedo Holdings B.V and distributed in over 170 countries around the world; SPEEDO, the ARROW device, FASTSKIN, LZR PULSE, SPEEDO ENDURANCE, FLIPTURNS, FASTSKINFSII, SPEEDO BIOFUSE, SWYM and LZR RACER are registered trademarks of Speedo Holdings B.V. The LZR RACER suit has worldwide design rights and patents pending.

11-year-old swimmer, Florence Dickin from Ipswich has just completed her fifth 22 mile ‘Channel crossing’, swimming a total of 110 miles for Aspire, one of the UK’s leading spinal injury charities.

What’s more, the completion of the fifth swim marks only the half way point of her challenge. Florence is attempting to swim the distance of the English Channel 10 times for Aspire to mark the 10^th anniversary of their annual sponsored swimming event, the Aspire Channel Swim.

Florence hopes to complete the equivalent of 10 Channel crossings to France and back by December 2009 and is swimming at her local leisure centre, Crown Pools in Ipswich everyday.  She will clock up over 220 miles by the time she finishes her self-imposed challenge. 

For further information about taking part in the 10^th Anniversary Aspire Channel Swim (from Monday 14^th September to Sunday 6^th December 2009) please contact Rosie Cotton, Aspire Channel Swim, Freepost Ang40106, Stanmore, HA7 4BR, FREEPHONE 08000 370 880 or log onto www.aspirechannelswim.co.uk.

- Ends -

For media enquiries please contact: Elizabeth Ayto, Vicki Walker-Wright

Media Ambitions, 020 8940 2222 or 07967 726 806 or email elizabeth@mediaambitions.com or vicki@mediaambitions.com

www.mediaambitions.com

About Aspire

Forty thousand people in Britain have a spinal cord injury. There is no cure for a spinal cord injury.  Accidents resulting in spinal cord injuries usually mean being paralysed for life.  This can happen in the lower part of your body, sometimes from the chest down or even the neck down.  Four new cases occur every day. Aspire is the national spinal cord injury charity and works with people with spinal cord injuries to create opportunity, choice and independence. Its commitment to full integration between disabled and non disabled members of society in every aspect of life is unparalleled. 

The ASA is backing National Family Week and has produced an electronic fun activity pack to get families into the pool.

May 25th to 31st 2009 has been chosen for the UK’s first National Family Week, an initiative to celebrate family life by creating seven days of activities encouraging families to spend more quality time together.

Each day of National Family Week will be themed and this Saturday is “sports day”. Families are being encouraged to head to the park, catch their favourite team play, bring out their bikes or of course set out for a swim!

To help families make the most of the water, the ASA has produced an activity pack giving families ideas for the pool, as well as signposting them into other aquatic activities including learn to swim lessons, aquatic fitness classes and clubs.

To view the activity pack CLICK HERE  or to learn more about National Family Week CLICK HERE.

-ENDS-

For more information contact the ASA PR Manager Sharon Rose on 01509 632262, 07876 652318 or email sharon.rose@swimming.org

The ASA is the English National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water, and Synchronised Swimming. It organises competition throughout England, establishes the Laws of the Sport and operates comprehensive certification and education programmes for Teachers, Coaches and Officials as well as its renowned Learn To Swim Awards scheme. The ASA supports 1,220 affiliated swimming clubs through a National/Regional/County structure. The ASA aims to ensure everybody has an opportunity to learn to swim.

About British Gas
British Gas, the biggest energy supplier in the country, has the lowest carbon intensity of any of the major UK energy suppliers in terms of tonnes of CO2 emitted per megawatt hour of electricity supplied to customers.  The company is one of the biggest investors in renewable power generation, principally offshore wind. Its recently completed Lynn and Inner Dowsing development, off the Lincolnshire coast, is the UK's largest offshore wind development. British Gas is committed to energy efficiency.  Our Energy Savers Report provides free expert advice on how you can cut energy use in the home and, in turn, save money.  So far, the report has shown over 2 million people how they could make an average saving of £175 a year.  To complete a report go to www.britishgas.co.uk/energy-efficiency/energy-savers-report

About Kellogg's
The Kellogg Company was founded in 1906 and today produces 40 different cereals including popular brands such as Special K, Cornflakes and Coco Pops, and 56 different snacks including brands such as Nutri-Grain and Special K snacks. Kellogg's has been a partner of the ASA and British Swimming for 13 years, sponsoring the Kellogg's ASA Awards and enabling over 50,000 people to take up swimming as part of an active lifestyle.

About Speedo®
The world’s leading swimwear brand, Speedo® is passionate about life in and around the water, creating revolutionary new technologies, designs and innovations. Supporting swimming from grass-roots through to elite level, including the phenomenal Michael Phelps, Speedo® is owned by Speedo Holdings B.V and distributed in over 170 countries around the world; SPEEDO, the ARROW device, FASTSKIN, LZR PULSE, SPEEDO ENDURANCE, FLIPTURNS, FASTSKINFSII, SPEEDO BIOFUSE, SWYM and LZR RACER are registered trademarks of Speedo Holdings B.V. The LZR RACER suit has worldwide design rights and patents pending.

The Great Scottish Swim looks set to make waves this August when the exciting one mile open water challenge comes to Strathclyde Country Park, North Lanarkshire. Entries are now open at www.greatswim.org

The swim is the latest event to be announced as part of Great Swim - a new series of one mile mass participation televised events taking place throughout the UK, following the success of the Great North Swim, which made its debut in Windermere last September as Britain’s biggest open water mass participation swim.

The Great Scottish Swim will take place on Saturday 29th August and is open to those of all abilities, from world champions to club swimmers, fun swimmers who want a new challenge to those who want to get fit whilst raising money for charity.

The inaugural event has been secured through a partnership of EventScotland and North Lanarkshire Council.

Paul Bush OBE, Chief Operating Officer at EventScotland, the national events agency, said: “Mass participation events play an important role in Scotland’s events calendar and this is the first event of its kind for Scotland.  The event itself will be broadcast both within the UK and internationally, raising the profile of swimming in Scotland and Scotland as a destination.  The Great Scottish Swim is an outstanding addition to Scotland’s sporting portfolio and we anticipate thousands of people from the UK and beyond will be signing up to take the plunge in August.”

Taking its inspiration from the world’s biggest half marathon-the Bupa Great North Run, Great Swim uses the formula of mass participation events, providing a focus and a challenge for which the individual can train. Open water swimming was introduced to the Olympics in 2008 and has enjoyed growing interest since.

North Lanarkshire Council, which operates Strathclyde Country Park, is confident the swim will be a complete success. “The council is delighted to be welcoming the Great Scottish Swim to Strathclyde Country Park,” said Paul Jukes, Executive Director of Environmental Services. “It’s an excellent facility for this kind of occasion, as the success of the triathlons, rowing championships and other sporting events we’ve hosted have shown.

“We’re looking forward to working with all the organisers to produce an excellent day for everyone.”

Swimming provides the perfect alternative to running and is a great way to get fit whilst having fun. The aim is to build the world’s largest mass participation swimming programme, expanding to more venues throughout the UK in 2010.

The entry limit for the Great Scottish Swim is 2000 people and the event is open to people ages 16 years and over. For more information please visit www.greatswim.org

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For more information please contact Caroline Holmes: caroline.holmes@nova-international.com or call 0191 226 3210, mobile 07894 386 688

NOTES FOR EDITORS

NOVA INTERNATIONAL: Nova International, established in 1988 and headed by Olympic Medallist Brendan Foster have established themselves as a market leader in the world of sports marketing and event management. The company’s current brand portfolio includes Great Run the world’s largest mass particpation running programme, based on the Bupa Great North Run, the world’s biggest half marathon with over 52,000 entries.

The last year has seen the company branch into different sports looking at new opportunities and new audiences. Taking the already proven mass participation formula of Great Run and relating it to the new discipline of swimming, Great Swim has been created. Four events being staged acoss the UK make up the series, which is the UK’s biggest mass particiaption open water swim.

For more information please visit www.greatrun.org or www.greatswim.org

Event Scotland: EventScotland is the national events agency. EventScotland is working to make Scotland one of the world’s leading event destinations. By developing an exciting portfolio of sporting and cultural events EventScotland is helping to raise Scotland’s international profile and boost the economy by attracting more visitors. For further information about EventScotland, its funding programmes and latest event news visit EventScotland.org

Strathclyde Country Park : Facilities and Services: Strathclyde Country Park is well-established as one of Scotland's leading centres for outdoor recreation, offering a huge range of activities including rowing, windsurfing, dinghy sailing, canoeing and water ski-ing. Coarse angling permits are also available for the loch, rivers and ponds. The park lies in 400ha of countryside in the valley of the River Clyde, between Junctions 5 and 6 of the M74.

Nominations are now open for the Kellogg’s ASA Swimtastic Awards 2009 which celebrate some of the country’s most outstanding non-elite achievements in the pool.

Aimed at amateur swimmers, the awards recognise people of all ages and abilities as well as those responsible for providing learn to swim lessons. The awards are divided into ten clear categories and recognise achievements made through the Kellogg’s ASA Awards Scheme. 

National winners will be invited to a special awards ceremony in Stratford-upon-Avon on the 16th October 2009 where they will be able to join Britain’s top aquatic athletes in the pool before receiving their awards at a celebration dinner and disco in the evening.

Olympic bronze medallist Steve Parry, who has been involved with the Kellogg’s Swimtastic Awards for many years, and will be hosting the awards event this year, said: “Kellogg’s Swimtastic is a brilliant way of recognising people who enjoy swimming and who have reached personal goals in the pool,” he said.  “Swimming has given me so much in my life and Kellogg’s ASA Swimtastic is a celebration of what different people at different levels have achieved within our sport.

“Learning to swim is an important life skill and with so many people achieving Kellogg’s ASA Awards every year, Kellogg’s Swimtastic highlights some of the heart-warming, courageous and motivational stories of the people involved.”

Katie Brazier, the ASA’s Sponsorship Director, said: “The ASA organises the Kellogg’s ASA Swimtastic Awards because it is a great opportunity for us to celebrate the amazing achievements of people across all levels and areas of our sport.

“We know there are thousands of unsung swimming stars out there and so we are looking forward to receiving lots of nominations!”

Bruce Learner, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager at Kellogg’s said: “Kellogg’s have been enthusiastic sponsors and supporters of swimming for over 10 years. Swimming is a great way for the whole family to stay active and spend quality time together. These swimming awards recognise those special people who have achieved a little more than the rest of us.”

The ten categories for Kellogg’s Swimtastic 2009 are…

Young Swimmer of the Year
Disability Swimmer of the Year
Family Swim Award
Senior Swimmer Award
Fundraising Award
RLSS Life Saver of the Year
Facility Operator Award
Community Project Award
Swim School Award
Top Teacher Award

To find out more about each award and to nominate someone who deserves recognition for their achievements CLICK HERE. Nominations close on 31st August 2009.

-ENDS-

For more information contact the ASA PR Manager Sharon Rose on 01509 632262, 07876 652318 or email sharon.rose@swimming.org

The ASA is the English National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water, and Synchronised Swimming. It organises competition throughout England, establishes the Laws of the Sport and operates comprehensive certification and education programmes for Teachers, Coaches and Officials as well as its renowned Learn To Swim Awards scheme. The ASA supports 1,220 affiliated swimming clubs through a National/Regional/County structure. The ASA aims to ensure everybody has an opportunity to learn to swim.

About British Gas
British Gas, the biggest energy supplier in the country, has the lowest carbon intensity of any of the major UK energy suppliers in terms of tonnes of CO2 emitted per megawatt hour of electricity supplied to customers.  The company is one of the biggest investors in renewable power generation, principally offshore wind. Its recently completed Lynn and Inner Dowsing development, off the Lincolnshire coast, is the UK's largest offshore wind development. British Gas is committed to energy efficiency.  Our Energy Savers Report provides free expert advice on how you can cut energy use in the home and, in turn, save money.  So far, the report has shown over 2 million people how they could make an average saving of £175 a year.  To complete a report go to www.britishgas.co.uk/energy-efficiency/energy-savers-report

About Kellogg's
The Kellogg Company was founded in 1906 and today produces 40 different cereals including popular brands such as Special K, Cornflakes and Coco Pops, and 56 different snacks including brands such as Nutri-Grain and Special K snacks. Kellogg's has been a partner of the ASA and British Swimming for 13 years, sponsoring the Kellogg's ASA Awards and enabling over 50,000 people to take up swimming as part of an active lifestyle.

About Speedo®
The world’s leading swimwear brand, Speedo® is passionate about life in and around the water, creating revolutionary new technologies, designs and innovations. Supporting swimming from grass-roots through to elite level, including the phenomenal Michael Phelps, Speedo® is owned by Speedo Holdings B.V and distributed in over 170 countries around the world; SPEEDO, the ARROW device, FASTSKIN, LZR PULSE, SPEEDO ENDURANCE, FLIPTURNS, FASTSKINFSII, SPEEDO BIOFUSE, SWYM and LZR RACER are registered trademarks of Speedo Holdings B.V. The LZR RACER suit has worldwide design rights and patents pending.