------Program code: NS-081204-03354 (what's this?)
Source: CCTV.com
12-04-2008 10:35
 |
Swimming and diving are some of the most thrilling events at the Olympics. Each event has their fans glued to their seat in anticipation of who will dive the best or who will swim the fastest. A common thread between these two events is the water. Although swimming and diving are quite different, the water is their battlefield.
Any form of water was used for swimming in ancient times--rivers, lakes, or seas. At the first Olympiad, contestants swam in the Aegean Sea. They had to be transported to the starting line by boat. A string of pumpkins was used to mark the route. The end point was simply the shore. The first swimming champion was Hajos Alfred, also known as the “Hungarian porpoise.” He recalled what it was like to swim in waters of 13 Degrees Celsius and waves 12 feet high and simply stated, “My will to live completely overrode my desire to win”.
 |
In the 1900 Paris Olympic Games, swimming was still held at side. This time the Seine River was the site of competition. Swimming in natural bodies of water made the events inconsistent with each other. The buoyancy of the sea water is larger than fresh water, and the river has its own velocity. For the 1908 London Olympic Games, a 100-meter- long swimming pool was dug in the middle of the London White City Stadium. Although it shared the same space with other events, this was the first time swimming was held in an indoor swimming pool.
Over the next decades, swimming pools served multiple purposes. In the 1948 London Olympic Games, the boxing ring was place on a bridge across the pool. The boxers were forced to inhale the chlorine fumes coming from the water. In the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, the swimming pool was transformed into a judo sports arena after the swimming events were finished.
As countries developed, the swimming pool became more standardized and specialized for the water events at the Olympics. Swimming pools became easier and faster to build. Within a few decades, cities all over the world as well as universities, hotels, residences had swimming pools. They were diverse and included outdoor and indoor, seawater and fresh water pools. The open-air swimming pool in Kansas was almost half the city. The Nemo 33 pool in Brussels is 33 meters deep and is considered a diving paradise. The San Alfonso del Mar, located in Chile, is over 1,000 m long and has an area of over 80,000㎡. It was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records. Yet, all of these pools are for recreational use and aren’t suitable for competitions.
The standard Olympic swimming pool is 50 meters long, 25 meters wide, and 2 meters deep. The pool itself usually weighs about 2500 tons.
In the 1920 Antwerp Olympic Games, Australian swimmers accused the Americans of blocking them. This type of problem was later solved, as ropes with corks marked off the lanes in the 1920 Paris Olympic Games. Today, competition level pools have 10 swimming lanes. The ropes now use plastic dividers. The dividers ensure there’s less disturbance and wave turbulence between swimmers.
Lighting is also critical to a swimming pool. The best light includes good horizontal and vertical luminance as well as a standard color temperature. This means there won’t be shadows on the wall of the pool. The touch screen on the walls is precise to the millisecond. The starting platform is equipped with pressure sensors that can tell if a swimmer left too soon. The large video screen and results board display scores and times fast.
The modern swimming pool is a complex structure. Its bottom is suspended and full of criss-cross pipes. On the wall, there are rows of hydraulic steel frames. The swimming pool is like a huge glass liner of a flask.
Water is circulated through water pumps and filters. This helps keep the pool clean, it eliminates bacteria and oxidizes organic matter in the water. The oxidizing capacity of this oxygen-isomer structure is much better than chlorine and won’t result in secondary pollution. This is much better than only using ultraviolet rays. It deodorizes as well as eliminates taste and de-colorization. The filters are composed of quartz sand, activated charcoal and diatomaceous earth.
