Surf Lifesaving: voluntary lifeguard services & competitive surf sport originated in Australia, expanding globally

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Surf lifesaving originated in Australia in 1906 in response to drownings at local beaches in Sydney. It comprises key aspects of voluntary lifeguard services and competitive surf sport and has expanded globally to other countries including New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, and the United States. Such groups became necessary following the relaxing of laws prohibiting daylight bathing on Australian beaches. Volunteer groups of men were trained in lifesaving methods and patrolled the beaches as lifesavers looking after public safety.

The other key part of surf lifesaving is the competitive sport which evolved from the training activities of lifesavers at Australian surf beaches, though most events share little with modern Inflatable Rescue Boat (IRB) based surf rescue techniques. The sport is still based around the volunteer clubs which perform the rescue duty, from the children in the "nippers" though to professional elite circuits that have been established for the high-profile "ironman" events. The sport is mainly still confined to Australia and New Zealand, although the Nova Scotia Lifeguard Service in Canada has run the Nova Scotia Surf League competitions every summer since 2000, and competition programs exist in 5 regions of Canada. In Europe the sport is increasingly developed, with Spain and Germany particularly strong and the UK and Ireland developing rapidly.

Surf lifesaving clubs regularly hold surf carnivals where clubs compete with each other in a range of beach- and rescue-oriented events including combined swimming and running, surf ski and surf boat races. The youth arm of the clubs is known as Nippers, and holds similar events. The various events involve elements of surf swimming, board riding, sand running, mock rescues using rowed surf boats, and paddling special kayak-like surf skis. Some events are for individuals, but many are team events.

Individual surf lifesaving events include:
* Ironman
* Long boat rescue (also called surf boat rescue)
* R&R (Rescue & Resuscitation)
* March Past
* Beach events (including Beach Sprints, Beach Relays and Flags)
* Surf Ski
* First Aid Competition, Champion Lifesaver and Patrol Competition
* Board events
* IRB racing

Surf lifesaving in Australia is well-developed as both a voluntary lifesaver service and as a competitive sport. There are 305 surf lifesaving clubs in Australia that collectively patrol over 400 beaches. In the 2003-2004 season there were 24,968 active members (those who are rostered to patrol regularly), of which approximately 40% are women. In the 2003-2004 patrol season, lifesavers performed 9,044 rescues, provided emergency care to 26,739 patients, and undertook 171,965 preventive actions. Lifesavers are distinguished in Australia from paid lifeguards which are generally employed by the relevant Local Government authority and patrol the beach throughout the year.

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Photos courtesy of Harvie Allison / EPA and Getty Images

Original Source: Wikipedia and Universal Sports