Cross-sectional study of the level of basic swimming skills of elementary school pupils in a selected region of the Czech Republic in the years 1995–2015

The physical performance and level of motor skills of children in the Czech Republic have been declining for a long time. Children spend their free time passively, e.g. sitting in front of the TV or playing computer games, and more of them suffer from overweight and obesity. However, the increasing number of swimming pools and swimming schools in Brno indicates the growing popularity of swimming and water sports. The aim of this study was to evaluate the swimming skills of elementary school pupils during the years 1995–2015. We found the swimming skills records for this 20-year period of 14.793 year two pupils who had never participated in a swimming course during their school attendance. The ratio of swimmers and non-swimmers, as well as the influence on the given ratio made by variations in the national curriculum caused by changes to the law on schools were assessed. It was shown that there has been an increase in the proportion of swimmers and a decrease in the proportion of pupils afraid of water. The number of pupils who were able to float and were not afraid of water was about 20 % in all 20 years (range 14.2–26.9 %). We can track a positive trend in swimming skills even though there has been no obligatory swimming course at primary schools in the Czech Republic since 2005. Positive trend in swimming skills shows that even in a period of increasing physical inactivity of children, a positive trend can be traced in some movement skills if the appropriate conditions are provided.