THE region's committed swimmers are dipping their toes in the water again.
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Warrnambool Swimming Club - hit hard by coronavirus restrictions which have shut down pools for almost three months - has started ocean swimming in groups of 10, as per social distancing protocols.
Now, a return to indoor pool training is in sight.
From June 1 pools can open with 20 patrons at a time. This includes three swimmers per lane.
Warrnambool Swimming Club has plans in place to adhere to those regulations once the council-run Aquazone and The Splash Factory, which leases a building from the Victorian education department, open.
Warrnambool-based coach Jayson Lamb, whose swimmers train at both facilities, will instruct up to 12 swimmers at a time across four lanes at The Splash Factory on mornings.
Swimmers train at both complexes at night during winter.
But Lamb said he would now await the green light. He expects the education department to release a start date later this week.
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He said he was waiting on a tick of approval from Aquazone too but he felt content with the club's plan for when that happens.
It has come up with "a plan to try and put their mind at ease".
He said the club would take a measured approach to its return but was eager to be back in the water "the sooner the better".
"It will be staged, it won't be in full swing," Lamb said.
"Numbers will be restricted in each group we have and there will be particular rules and regulations which were different prior to this.
"Our sessions will only be an hour long to start with and that will allow us to get more kids through the pool.
"They won't be able to congregate at the end of a lane. Even things like their mesh bags, that they sort all their equipment in, we'll have to store in other places."
Lamb said the coaches needed to ease their swimmers back to avoid injury too.
"It's a progressive change in the volume and intensity we're doing," he said.
"We can't just go straight back into it, just to avoid injury it will be a nice easing back into it."
Swimmers have remained connected while on dry land.
The club has run Zoom lessons focusing on strength and conditioning and aerobic capacity. It has also started ocean water swims, which adhere to the social distancing requirements, in Warrnambool.
They can swim in groups of 10. From Monday, when state government guidelines ease, that can expand to 20.
"The kids are loving it. They don't love the first 100 metres (because it's cold) but after that they get used to it," he said.
"We've been getting about 15 so we've been splitting up into two groups."
Lamb, who has a background in ocean swimming, said south-west swimmers were lucky to have a beach at their disposal.
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