Rowdy Gaines advocates for reopening of pools amid pandemic

Rowdy Gaines’s passion for swimming is evident.

“The reason why I keep doing the broadcast and NBC hires me, is the fact that I really show my passion,” NBC Olympic Swimming analyst and USA Swimming Director of Community Engagement Rowdy Gaines says.

“I was so frustrated… To be able to reach out to those policymakers and those public officials and say, ‘It’s OK. We can do this safely.’ And all we’re trying to do is to prioritize opening pools for instructional purpose-driven aquatics, that’s the key in all this. We’re not saying ‘hey, swing open the doors and let all these large crowds come in.’ We’re saying we can do this, and we can do it safely,” Rowdy Gaines says.

And now, he tries to educate parents and the public, on the safety of swimming.

“It’s the only sport in the world, that can literally save your life,” Gaines says. “You’re talking especially about our underserved communities, where an African-American child is five times more likely to drown than a Caucasian child. To me? That’s important to do something about it.”

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