Michael Ulmer had expected a rush.
There has been a lack of swimming courses for many years, so parents of future seahorse candidates traditionally appear early for the registration date at the Frankfurt swimming school.
The extent early Thursday morning surprised the chairman of the first Frankfurt swimming club, which is responsible for organizing the swimming school, but then it did.
“At seven thirty, half an hour before we opened, people were already queuing for two blocks.
At peak times, the line was a good 800 meters long," said Ulmer.
Daniel Meuren
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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The largest provider of beginner courses in the city insists on registering by phone or in person in order to be able to assign children to courses and teachers that are tailored to their needs, which is important for the more anxious, for example.
Backwater due to Corona
Because of the rush this year, only a good half of the 3,400 prospective students can be considered for a place in a course in the upcoming summer cycle.
"We have 183 courses with a good 1,700 places," said Ulmer.
If you didn't get a place, you can still hope for preferential allocation the next time you register thanks to a waiting list.
Ulmer explains the extraordinary demand with a certain backlog due to the corona pandemic, during which no courses were possible for a long time.
"There's almost a whole year that can only learn to swim late, that's a problem," says Ulmer.
In addition, the lack of bathrooms is noticeable;
two school swimming pools have been broken for some time.
"We have enough teaching staff, but the infrastructure is lacking."