Open water swimming events without regulation are putting people's lives at risk, according to a new report following a keen swimmer's death in Sunderland.
The warning comes following a coroner's report into the death of Joel Kenneth Ineson, 55, who drowned at Hetton Lyons Park on 1 June 2023 after suffering a cardiac event during an organised open water swim.
David Place, senior coroner for the City of Sunderland, found his death was accidental and wasn't caused by safety issues at the event.
However, in a report aimed at preventing future deaths, Mr Place warned that the growing popularity of open water swimming was not matched by sufficient oversight or regulation.
"Mr Ineson was a keen participant in organised open water swimming events with safety at the forefront of his mind," wrote Mr Place.
"[He had] a reasonable expectation that appropriate safety measures would be in place" and was charged a small fee for entry.
The report found, however, that there was "uncertainty and confusion" around who was responsible for safety precautions at the event.
This led, found the report, to "some participants not receiving a specific safety briefing, a lack of knowledge of the competency [of] every participant and no understanding as to who was in the water and how many people were in the water at any one time".
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Open water swimming events are not regulated by any UK body and as such, there is no specific health and safety guidance.
Event organisers aren't required to carry out pre-session safety briefings, risk assessments, signing in and out of the water systems, emergency plans or organiser training, according to the report.
Mr Place is now calling on the government to strengthen regulations around open water swimming events.
He sent the warning - known as a Regulation 28 report - to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and to the chief executive of the Health and Safety Executive.
They have until 5 June to respond, setting out what action they propose to take or explaining why none is planned.
(c) Sky News 2025: Open water swimming events without regulation 'risk future deaths', warns coroner
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