Four-Time Olympic Swimming Medalist, Jones,
Nearly Drowned as a Five-Year-Old, Offers Water Safety Tips
to Pool Owners, Parents
PHOENIX, May 14, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- This month is National Water Safety Month, and to
celebrate, Leslie's, the leading pool and spa care retailer in the
U.S., is joining forces with its water safety partner, Cullen Jones, four-time Olympic swimming
medalist and first African American swimmer to hold a world record.
Together, they share valuable tips for pool owners and parents to
help make the 2024 swim season safe and enjoyable for all.
Note to Broadcast and Online Media: Please click here for a
downloadable video news story/interview with Cullen Jones on this topic.
Jones nearly drowned at age five at a water park in Pennsylvania on a family vacation. His parents
reacted — not by keeping him out of the water, but by enrolling him
in swimming lessons, where he thrived. Today, he is not
only renowned for his athletic achievements, but also as a
passionate advocate for swimming lessons and water safety.
Leslie's and Jones offer the three tenets of water safety,
which include maintaining healthy and safe pool water, ensuring a
secure pool area, and encouraging swimming lessons and water safety
education. While swimming lessons help individuals be safe
around water, pool owners should take additional precautions to
prevent drownings and maintain a safe environment.
Regular water testing and treatment are crucial for swim-safe
water, and Leslie's makes it easy for pool owners with its
AccuBlue® and AccuBlue Home® water testing solutions. The retailer
also offers a range of products, tools, and information to stay
safe in and around the pool, from the latest in pool security
fencing, gates, safety covers, and alarms to learn-to-swim gear and
U.S. Coast Guard-approved personal floatation products.
Harris Poll Survey: Nearly Half of Parents Say Their Child
Can't Swim
According to a recent Leslie's-commissioned
survey conducted by The Harris Poll, nearly half the parents of
children under 18 years of age say their child does not know how to
swim, and 61% say their child has not taken swimming lessons.
Almost 30% of parents say they are concerned about their child
drowning. In that same poll, only 63% of American adults indicated
they are very comfortable being around water, and 36% of those
surveyed said they do not know how to swim.
Here are some additional relevant statistics:
- Drowning is the leading cause of accidental death in children
ages 1–4.*
- Drowning is the second-leading cause of unintentional injury
death in children and adolescents ages 5–19, behind motor vehicle
crashes.*
- May, June and July mark the deadliest months of the year for
drowning deaths in the U.S.**
- There's an 88% chance that a child will be safer in the water
and not drown if they have formal swimming lessons.***
"Swimming lessons save lives," said Cullen Jones. "Children are irresistibly drawn
to water, whether it's a backyard pool, hot tub, a pond, or a
river. It's better to teach them how to be safe in the water than
to instruct them to avoid it and hope they listen. Learning to be
safe and at ease in the water also opens up a whole new world of
recreational and athletic possibilities, such as boating, fishing,
competitive swimming, and more."
Here are some additional tips from Jones for parents and
guardians:
- Start early by getting infants into the water as early as 6
months old. This helps the child get acclimated to the water and
pool environment, easing things when it's time for swimming
lessons. Children can start swimming lessons as early as 6 years
old.
- Enroll in professional swim instruction programs. It's
important for people and kids to learn to swim from trained
instructors and not from a parent or family friend.
- To help make kids who can't yet swim feel secure in the water,
consider a life jacket and seek out those that are U.S. Coast
Guard approved.
- Keep playtime separate from learning, designating times for
swim lessons and practice apart from regular pool
recreation.
- Always have dedicated, undistracted supervision when children
are in the water. Stay alert and keep your eyes on the pool. Stay
off cell phones and eliminate other distractions.
- Be safe and have fun!
Join the Cause
This month, Leslie's is launching
fundraising efforts supporting learn-to-swim and water safety
education partners Boys & Girls Clubs of America and the
American Red Cross. From May 7 through
October 31, 2024, the company is accepting customer
donations online and in more than 1,000 stores across the nation to
support water safety and drowning prevention programs with 100% of
the proceeds split equally between Boys & Girls Clubs of
America and the American Red Cross. Both organizations are actively
involved in providing community resources to help people across the
nation learn to swim through professional instruction programs.
Since 2020, Leslie's has raised and donated more than $1.5 million for such programs, with the funds
fueling local initiatives in communities across the U.S.
Harris Poll Survey: 71% of Americans Mistakenly Assume Clear
Pool Water Is Swim-Safe
Clear-looking pool water is
mistakenly assumed to be safe for swimming, according to a
March 2024 survey conducted by The
Harris Poll and commissioned by Leslie's. The poll found that 71%
of those surveyed believe that clear water is clean and safe for
swimming. However, even clear water can contain contaminants that
pose a danger to swimmers, and pool owners shouldn't assume a pool
is safe just because the water is clear. Water testing is crucial
for a clean, safe, and beautiful pool.
About AccuBlue® Water Testing
Regular water testing is
important in maintaining swim-safe water. Leslie's makes
water testing simple with its industry-leading AccuBlue®
technology — the only pool and spa water test that covers all
10 water chemistry components and generates a corresponding
easy-to-follow treatment plan. In just 60 seconds, this free,
in-store water test delivers a hardcopy printout with a water
quality score and step-by-step, customized water treatment plan to
help keep pool water balanced. Pool and spa owners have relied on
this professional-grade testing over the past six decades, with
more than 50 million tests conducted by Leslie's.
Last May, Leslie's made the most accurate water test more
convenient when the company launched its AccuBlue Home® membership
program. This revolutionary at-home water testing system is the
first of its kind and offers the same leading in-store testing
technology, engineered into a compact at-home device. The AccuBlue
Home testing device connects to the Leslie's app to deliver a water
quality score and customized water treatment plan to the user's
mobile phone or tablet. Since its launch, AccuBlue Home has been
embraced by pool owners, who value its convenience and accuracy.
The membership program has earned a near-perfect five-star rating
in member reviews.
About Leslie's
Founded in 1963, Leslie's is the
largest and most trusted direct-to-consumer brand in the U.S. pool
and spa care industry. The Company serves the aftermarket needs of
residential and professional consumers with an extensive and
largely exclusive assortment of essential pool and spa care
products. The Company operates an integrated ecosystem of more than
1,000 physical locations and a robust digital platform, enabling
consumers to engage with Leslie's whenever, wherever, and however
they prefer to shop. Its dedicated team of associates, pool and spa
care experts, and experienced service technicians are passionate
about empowering Leslie's consumers with the knowledge, products,
and solutions necessary to confidently maintain and enjoy their
pools and spas. For more information about Leslie's, visit
lesliespool.com or follow and engage with us: @lesliespoolcare on
Instagram, Leslie's on Facebook, and @lesliespoolcare on
Twitter.
About Cullen
Jones
Cullen Jones is
a four-time Olympic swimming medalist and the first African
American swimmer to hold a world record. He is a swimming lesson
advocate and Leslie's collaboration partner serving as the water
safety expert. He nearly drowned at a water park when he was
five years old. He is also a father to four-year-old son Ayvn
Cullen Jones. Learn more about Jones here.
March 2024 Survey
Method:
This survey was conducted online within the U.S.
by The Harris Poll on behalf of Leslie's from March 5-7, 2024, among 2,087 adults ages 18 and
older, among whom 314 are maintaining a pool. The sampling
precision of Harris online polls
is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this
study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage
points using a 95% confidence level.
2023 Survey Method:
This survey was conducted online
within the U.S. by The Harris Poll on behalf of Leslie's from
April 25-27, 2023, among 2,050 adults
ages 18 and older, including 687 parents of children under age 18.
Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have
agreed to participate in Harris Poll surveys. The sampling
precision of Harris online polls
is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this
study, the sample data is accurate to within + 2.8 percentage
points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be
wider among subsets of the surveyed population of
interest.
*Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
**Source: statista.com for 2022
***Source: Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
Pediatrics
Media: Mardi Larson, Amendola for Leslie's,
mlarson@acmarketingpr.com, 612.384.4383
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SOURCE Leslie's