Saturday, 02 June 2018 18:00

New swimming course for refugee-women & -girls starts on 18. of June 2018 at 7:30 pm

After last year's great success there will be a swimming course for refugee women again this year from 18. 06. 2018. When the leisure pool Wolfhagen closes at 8 p. m. on Monday evening, in water is really life again: In the swimming pool the VfL gymnastladies turn their circles during rehab swimming under the direction of Ulrike Kleinschmidt. And in the neighbouring non-swimmer area, the swimming course for refugee women and girls takes place under the direction of sports coach Heiko Weiershäuser.

After the swimming course for refugee children at the Wilhelm Filchner School was so successful, the desire to offer a swimming course for women arose last year, says sports coach Heiko Weiershäuser. Not an easy task, because the cultural differences in terms of women, swimming pool and a swimming instructor were already extremely great. So there were men who didn't want their wife to go to the swimming pool with a strange man. But fortunately these were only a few exceptions. Most families have listened to the project and found it good - perhaps because they know me and trust me.

As integration pilot in the district of Kassel and honorary sports coach in Wolfhagen, I would like to contribute to the success of the mammoth task of integration. And this inevitably includes learning to swim. Some women told me last year with tears in their eyes about the panic they had while fleeing in a boat across the Mediterranean. One said, "I sat in the middle of the boat, prayed all the time and was stiff with fear because I knew that if the boat tips over, I'm dead.

After the first beginnings with water experience and getting involved with the medium of water, we want to continue with diving experiments. Through the voluntary helpers Anja Müller-Opfermann and Ines Riedel, we are in a position to address the individual women in a differentiated manner. We - and that is the beautiful thing - are beside me and the two ladies also other voluntary young helpers from the refugee circles, who spontaneously agreed to help last year. Mirey (11 years), Tala (13 years) and I can't wait to get going again, says Laura Weiershäuser (12 years), who helps her father and wants to train the daughters with her two friends from Syria.

At the end of each exercise evening - after initial great scepticism and great persuasion last year - sliding will be on the programme again this year. Then the women can't help but scream their fun to their hearts' content.

The lived integration in Wolfhagen also includes the fact that VfL chairman Monika Jakob has already promised joint exercise units of gymnasts and refugee women. Of course this is a little dependent on the "learning progress" of the refugee women, says Sportcoach Weiershäuser, but the offer alone is a really great sign, for which I would like to express my sincere thanks.

Our thanks go to the city of Wolfhagen, which provides us with the leisure pool free of charge. Only if swimming supervisor Sven Gulau has to be called in as swimming instructor, fees for a swimming course are due. These are then taken over by the sports coach from the sports coach budget of the state funds "Sports & Refugees". Thanks are also due to the Förderverein Erlebnisbad Wolfhagen, which will provide us with materials free of charge.

We would be happy to invite other interested women, regardless of whether they are refugees or German recipients of benefits from the Job Centre or the Social Welfare Office, to come and have a look at the leisure pool at 7:30 p. m. on Monday evening. For the financing there are certainly some possibilities, where I am happy to help as a sports coach.