A novel stroke to make a splash 

CHENNAI:  In our country, water sports are acknowledged but not necessarily encouraged. The same applause and facilities we deliver for a sport like cricket doesn’t often apply in the case of swimming.  ACES — Academy of Excellence in Swimming — took this into consideration and built Chennai’s first Spanish Sky pool. The 5-lane 25-metre sky pool is constructed with FINA criteria and it allows swimmers to enjoy training in a well-equipped and specialised setting. 

A facility for all
ACES was founded by Laavanya Ishwar and Ishwar Prasad, parents of two national medal winning swimmers, Shriya and Shakti. “My daughters are why we wanted to set up this facility for training. For their coaching, we had to travel a lot in search of facilities. They spent a lot of time in our car, travelling. They had their meals and completed the school work in the car to balance the time. As athletes we trained them to embrace the training methodologies hundred per cent. That is the same thing we are offering here through professional coaches, counsellors, physiotherapists and dietitians. We provide a more scientific approach to the art of swimming,” said Ishwar.

In addition to the state-of-the-art pool, the academy features a fully equipped gym and technologies such as underwater stroke video analysis. Arvind Nainar, the head coach, holds ASCA-5, USA Swimming, and AUSTSWIM certificates, and the other coaches hold NIS certifications. During courses, a professional lifeguard is also present. “The coach to student ratio is 1:8. If the kids are too small, then we make sure that the ratio is 1:3. We give individual attention to improve the quality of swimming and promote aquatic safety. We take progressive methodologies to make sure that the kids are learning everything step-by-step,” explained Arvind.

The mission 
ACES aims to churn out swimmers who will be capable of successfully competing in the international arena. Ishwar shared, “Our swimmers, like their contemporaries in other states or nations, require improved facilities. After all, they put in equal, if not greater, effort. We built this self-contained facility to meet the needs of swimmers who want to train both in and out of water. An athlete’s ability to keep informed is critical. If we don’t accomplish it, other international swimmers may take our place.”

ACES also provides attention to children with special needs and promotes hydrotherapy. Ishwar notes, “Children with special needs have a lot of energy that is squandered because they don’t know how to harness it. When channelised in the right direction, we see that they swim well and find the process of training calming  and therapeutic.” The institution also provides transport facilities from Velachery to make sure that no kid is struggling to get a platform.

Enrol now
ACES is located at Akkarai. It has annual, half-yearly, quarterly, and pay-per-use pricing schemes. The Academy has begun sessions with its first group of 30 state and national-level top swimmers and is now accepting enrolment. 

For details, call 8511851119.