In this article we will introduce you to the features of swimming pools intended for sports.
Swimming pools are aquatic facilities which, in addition to being used for recreational purposes, are also used for sports competitions. The main sports are swimming, water polo, diving and synchronized swimming. They are practiced in outdoor and indoor sports pools. As it is not cost-effective to make a separate pool for each of these different sports, swimming pools for competition and training purposes are usually designed in such a way that all four sports can be practised in them. For this it is important before starting design and the construction of the poolto know what types of sports will be practiced in it. This is because the right dimensions and depths need to be selected so that it can satisfy the requirements of these sports. Sports pools are designed in a rectangular shape and the dimensions can be different.
Outdoor swimming pools shall be so placed that their longitudinal axis shall be in a north-south direction. For indoor pools, it is important to maintain the clear height above the pool water level. This depends on the size and purpose of the pool. The standard clear height for a 50 m pool is 6 m and for teaching pools is 4,20 m.
Swimming competitions are held in pools 50.00 m long and 25.00 m wide or 25.00 m long and 12.50 m wide. For training pools the following non-standard lengths may be used: 16.66 m and 33.33 m, and the following non-standard widths: 10.00, 11.50, 15.00, 16.66, 21.00 m.
The depth of the water depends on what sports will be practiced in the pool. If only swimming is practised, the depth must be at least 1.80 m, with a reduction in depth at the cross wall without starting blocks to 1.35 m. The walls shall be designed vertical and parallel to each other with a tolerance of 3 cm from the nominal dimension. For example, the length of an Olympic pool shall be 50,00 m to 50,03 m. There shall be a resting step along the entire perimeter of the pool, which shall be designed 1,20 m below the water level.
The sports pool can be done with skimmers or an overflow chute. Our recommendation is to build with an overflow chute. This way the water is better purified and the water level is level with the slab, not 15 cm lower than it. The overflow chute shall be designed either around the entire perimeter or only along the two long sides of the basin. In our opinion, it is better to make them only along the two long sides of the pool and raise the two short sides 30 cm above the water level. As a result, the starting blocks to be installed become lower - 40 cm. / The total length of the starting blocks should be 70 cm above the water level of the pool, and there is no need to put movable walls to help the swimmers turn around.
When designing swimming pools, stairs for entry and exit must be provided. The number of stairs required is 4 or 6 depending on the length of the pool. The stairs could be metal with an anti-slip coating or they could be moulded into the niches themselves.
Special markings shall be affixed at sports pools. Longitudinally along the bottom of the swimming pool, the corridors shall be marked. Markings shall also be made on the two short transverse walls for the turning of the swimmers. The marking shall be of a contrasting colour. The swimming corridors shall also be marked out on the water surface by means of ropes with floats strung on them. The floats may be of different profiles and cross-sections. It is important that they can absorb the waves generated by the swimmers. Standards allow the diameter of these ropes to vary from f110 to f150 mm.
In addition to the markings, two types of indicators are placed in the sports pools: for false start and for back flip . The back-flip indicators shall be mounted 5,00 m on each of the short sides and 180 cm from the water surface and shall be triangular flags. The false start indicator shall be positioned 15,00 m from the side from which it is started and shall be positioned 120 cm from the water surface and shall be a rope with floats strung on it.
Illuminators can also be placed in the pools to monitor and film swimmers with cameras. These are placed along the long sides and in the deep part of the pool. An electronic system is used when competitions are held or results are recorded in training.
They is a complex facility that consists of many elements: timing system for swimming sports, interface boxes for connecting the equipment at each post, set with a judging hand button, contact plates for the starting blocks, starting system for the corridors with individual speakers, central speaker and flash light, scoreboard with the necessary rows for simultaneous reflection of the results of all corridors, etc.
Sports pools can be lined with any type of liner, but it is imperative that the short sides are made of anti-slip material to make it easier for swimmers to turn around. We recommend that swimming pools are lined with 245x120x8 mm porcelain tiles. This helps to reduce joints and better strength of the lining itself due to the large surface area of the tile.
With porcelain tiles, there are also anti-slip ones that can be installed on both short sides. When selecting a pool board with an overflow chute, we recommend that the porcelain tiles be the FINLAND system. Here the tiles are inclined. This achieves a smooth slope imitating a lagoon, where the resulting waves are "extinguished" by the swimmers.
Features of the pools for diving, water polo and synchronized swimming.
Such competitions can be held in indoor and outdoor pools. Each of these pools has a water mirror size requirement depending on what disciplines will be practiced in it.
Pools for jumping in water
The pools for jumping into water can be of different sizes depending on the equipment to be installed in it: what combination of different types of platforms and springboards will be chosen and how they will be arranged. The width, length and depth of the pool also depend on this. It can be either 13,50 m by 17,65 m or 20,00 m by 20,00 m.
Competitions are held in the following disciplines: springboard jumping - height 3 meters and tower jumping - height 10 meters. Jumping from 1 metre springboard and tower with a height of 1, 3, 5 or 7.50 metres is practiced only in training activities.
