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Berlin (dpa) - The beginning of the outdoor pool season is likely to be a long time coming in most places this year.
“The baths normally open on May 1st.
Whether the date is possible this year is rather questionable due to the current pandemic, ”said the German Association of Towns and Municipalities (DStGB) on dpa request.
Last year, which was also dominated by Corona, outdoor pools could not have opened until the end of June.
This year, many cities and municipalities planned to open in mid to late May.
"Cities and municipalities are determined to open their outdoor swimming pools as soon as they are allowed to and the weather conditions permit," emphasized DStGB department head Uwe Lübking.
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Even the German Society for Bathing, in which operators of public pools are united, does not believe in a nationwide uniform open-air pool launch on May 1st. "Due to a lack of planning security, optimism in the industry is increasingly waning," said managing director Christian Mankel of the dpa. However, it will not be possible to prohibit outdoor sports throughout the summer. Mankel observed that bathers would have shown a great sense of responsibility in 2020.
The Federal Association of German Swimming Masters demanded that at least the outdoor pools should be able to open for outdoor sports. If it were up to association president Peter Harzheim, the indoor swimming pools could even reopen, albeit with a reduced number of visitors. «Our colleagues in the bathrooms have had positive experiences with corresponding concepts in the past year. And people need exercise, ”he told the dpa.
In any case, visitors to the outdoor pools will have to be prepared for restrictions this year as well.
Most of the baths are prepared for scenarios comparable to last year, said Mankel from the Society for Bathing.
“Online ticketing with fixed time windows and visitor limits will remain.
Instead of a mess of paper at the entrance, even more digital instruments will be used. "
For example, the first test runs with the Luca app were positively rated by baths.
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Depending on the occurrence of the infection, "pure testing" could also become an admission requirement - i.e. the availability of a daily negative corona test, Mankel explained.
The Association of Towns and Municipalities said: “Last summer, the pools already had experience with the opening of outdoor pools under Corona conditions, which they can now build on.
The bathrooms will use this experience with the booking system, the time slots and hygiene concepts and, if necessary, adapt them to current developments. "
Open-air swimming pools are a subsidy business for the municipalities, emphasized DStGB department head Lübking.
“Nevertheless, many cities and municipalities are sticking to the maintenance of the outdoor swimming pools.
Local people need fun and relaxation, especially because vacation trips are not possible or only possible to a limited extent. "
It is all the more important that the federal states provide the municipalities with sufficient financial resources so that they can continue to operate the pools in the future.
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Harzheim from the Federal Association of German Swimming Masters said: "What we should avoid is pool dying, that pools are completely closed."
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210424-99-333637 / 2