As typhoon Fengshen was sweeping up the coast in June, a group of youngsters was plunging into the waves at Shenzhen. Far from being thrill seekers, they were lifesavers from Hong Kong preparing for world championships in Germany, training with People's Liberation Army soldiers who were also going to compete.
'Although the army has strong swimmers, they were also scared of the waves,' says Charles Wong Ming-yin, a coach for the team from the Hong Kong Life Saving Society. 'I let the athletes stand with their backs to the waves until they became more confident and they went into the sea in pairs, starting with the strongest.'
Rescuing people who get into trouble in the water, or rather the art of performing such rescues, has become a competitive sport. International championships are held to promote exchanges of techniques among lifesavers.
Contestants are pitted against each other in simulated rescues. In a team event, a group entering a pool is given two minutes in which to rescue as many 'victims' as possible. At the beach, the team may be required to scoop up a struggling swimmer with a special tube and carry the person to safety. There are individual events too in which contestants use fins, rescue tubes, boards and ski paddlers to traverse obstacle courses.
Hong Kong sent six men and six women to the championships which ended last week, ranking 19th among the 33 teams. At the sea events held in Warnemunde, they struggled in choppy waters with strong currents and an influx of jellyfish - conditions they seldom encounter in Hong Kong. Although they didn't win medals, the team broke two Hong Kong records at the pool competitions in Berlin in the 4x25 metres mannequin-towing relays for men and women.
Contestants learn tips on effective lifesaving. 'For example, when we found [at previous championships] that some teams carried the mannequin across their backs rather than hold them at their sides because this increases their speed, we started practising that too,' says Eric Tsang Wai-sheung.
