Problems at Bonn's swimming pools Early- morning swimmer in wheelchair appeals to city authorities
Hardtberg · Britta Senftleben has to rely on her wheelchair for regular training at the Hardtbergbad swimming pool in Bonn. She is sorry that the early morning swim has been discontinued. She thinks the city should act more responsibly.
Britta Senftleben depends on a wheelchair to get around. A spinal cord infection has left her partially paralysed. Something probably went wrong with a flu vaccination in 2004. "The first years were hard," she says.At 36, she was literally catapulted out of her usual life. Her daughter was five; the family lived in the Südstadt in an apartment on the second floor. "Meanwhile, I manage well," she says. When she encounters obstacles she can't overcome in her wheelchair, she heaves herself out, slides and crawls on her buttocks.
Her arms are strong. That comes from swimming."Water is my element," she says. Since 2008, she has been going to the Hardtbergbad every day for an early morning swim - indoors and outdoors. The fact that early-morning swimming has been cancelled by the city due to a lack of staff at least until the end of the summer season frustrates the 54-year-old enormously. She feels it is a "slap in the face” since many Bonn residents depend on swimming for their health. "I spend the whole day sitting." She misses it, and she needs it. After just a few weeks, she notices how much she misses the laps in the water to strengthen her back muscles.
Lack of staff makes waves
Rüngsi and Römerbad, which continue to open at 6.30 a.m., are out of the question because of the distance and partly lack of accessibility. "Can't the city react more flexibly and reallocate staff so that the baths open early in the morning on a rotating basis?" But the city says it will stay this way.
"Instead of the necessary 200 temporary staff for the outdoor pools in Bonn, we currently only have 110 available. We have to manage the season with that now," says the deputy head of the city's sports and baths department, Elke Palm. The few staff are supposed to supervise at the poolside during peak bathing hours when the number of visitors is high.
The years of early morning swimming together have made Senftleben and the others at Hardtbergbad a sworn community. "You meet up with friends" - the "hard core" consists of seven mostly much older bathers. "One is over 90. He is complaining a lot, because there is no alternative for him either."
Senftleben's bathing bag is always ready to hand. It takes her five minutes by car to drive from Ückesdorf to the disabled parking space at the baths, then she gets out of her seat and into her wheelchair. From there it's easy. Everything is barrier-free. If the lift fails, the staff help her up the stairs - "a well-coordinated team.
In the familiar lanes
Her preferred stroke in the water is the crawl. The other early-morning swimmers show respect. For safety's sake, she swims alongside the rope so that she can quickly hold on if other swimmers push her away, usually unintentionally. If the pool is too crowded, it becomes difficult for her. "And yes, early-morning swimmers may seem a little militant. They want to swim in peace and always in their usual lane. Anyone who gets in the way of their straight line is a nuisance."
When Senftleben made the decision to exercise regularly in the water, she was unsure whether it would work - on her own, too. Barrier-free shower? A changing room where she can go with her wheelchair? At first she went to the Friesi before work.
Her fears were unfounded. "Everything was fine." In comparison, she says, going to a restaurant in Bonn still creates problems for her. "For example, the toilets or steps at the entrance." Senftleben will never travel by bus or train again. On a train journey with her husband, she says, a helper was ordered on the platform but was not there on time. Her husband went looking for him, while the conductor gave the signal for departure. "That's when you go into total panic."
Fortunately, passengers quickly helped her out. "Even with assistance, it's not possible, especially not on the spur of the moment by bus alone to go shopping in town." Even today, she regrets that she was never able to be at a parents' evening at her daughter's school - too many obstacles along the way.
Barrier-free life in Norway
Things are different in Norway, she says. "There, a disabled-friendly and thus more relaxed life has long been taken for granted." Senftleben has just spent another holiday there. By the fjord - swimming every day. "Being in the water is freedom," she says, "and a feeling as if nothing is there." She gains strength from it not only physically, but also mentally. "It's the self-affirmation: I can do this." Her father taught her to swim. "Today I am incredibly grateful to him." That's why she urges parents to send their children to swimming classes. "Everyone should know how to swim. Who knows what it's good for."
Senftleben has not yet found an adequate substitute for early morning swimming. A handbike? She rides it, but it puts a strain on her shoulder joints. Being limited by pain or even wear and tear would not be good at all. She depends on her strong arms. At least there is the prospect that with the start of the indoor swimming pool season, early morning swimming will be offered again. Senftleben doesn't even want to think about what will happen if the Hardtbergbad is closed for a long time for the urgently needed renovation.
Early swimming from 6.30 to 10 a.m. is currently offered at the Rüngsdorfer Freibad in Bad Godesberg and the Römerbad in Bonn-Castell until the end of the outdoor pool season.
Original text: Jutta Specht
Translation: Jean Lennox
