Objectives

Whenever your group needs some motivation or seems to get a bit too cold, use these relay games as warm-up intervals. They are a fun opportunity to train aquatic mobility and get your team fit.

Ball Relay

Players: Small Groups.

Required: T-shirts, Balls or Balloons.

Preparation:
Divide players into 2-4 teams of about 4-8 players. Make sure that all players know how to swim because they will have to swim the full length of the pool. If possible put a rope accross the pool that the players will have to swim under. You can either have one large T-shirt that will be passed on to each player during the race or everyone will have their own T-shirt on.

Start the Relay:
On go the first player from each team will put on the T-shirt, take one balloon and jump into the water. Once they are in the water they will put the balloon under their T-shirt and swim to the other end of the pool and back.

If you've streched a rope across the pool, they will have to swim under the rope. This is not an easy accomplishment. The balloon tends to pop out depending on how it is placed, either in the front or on the back. Let them choose where to carry their balloon and the whole team will see the advantages of balloon positions as they go.

If a balloon pops out, the swimmer has to return to that position where it was dislodged, replace the balloon and continue. The first team to complete the rotation wins.

Dress the Team Leader

Players: Small to large groups.


Required: Pile of clothes for each team. Preparation:
You need three or more similarly sized members in each team. They choose one leader per team. The team leaders go to one end of the pool and the other team members go to the other end. There each team has pile of clothes which together make up a complete outfit. Make sure the clothes are large enough to fit all players.

Start the Relay:
At the start one team member jumps in wearing the first item of clothing, swims to the team leader and hands over the clothing. Once the team leader has put it on, the next team member jumps in the other end wearing the next item. Weak swimmers should wear the lighter items, like T-shirts.

This is repeated until the team leader wears all the clothes, jumps in and swims back to the other end. The team whose leader reaches the other side first with all the clothes on is the winner.

Swimming Relay with Sweatshirts

Players: Small to large groups.


Required: Large sweatshirts or hoodies, trousers, T-shirts.

Goal: To be the first team to complete several lengths or widths of the pool swimming in a sweatshirt. This is a timed event. Winners will be determined by the fastest overall time.

Preparation:
Set up teams as to how many sweatshirts and good swimmers you have. If you have various levels of swimmers use the short length of the pool so that the weak swimmers can go across the shallow end.

Each team shares one sweatshirt for the relay, trousers and T-shirts are optional. The first person on each team puts the clothes on and everyone else lines up behind them.

Start the Relay:
At the start the leader jumps into the water, swims across the pool and back, and then exchanges the clothes on poolside with the next player to do the same.

The clothes must stay on for the entire time while swimming. Hands must be seen outside of the sleeves of the sweatshirt before the contestant may jump into the water. No one may help the two team members exchange the clothes. A 30 second time penalty applies if a team member is helped out of the water before the exchange. Teams who grab or pull another swimmer will be disqualified.

It's not that easy take off wet clothes and even harder putting them on. The easiest and fastest way is to take the sweatshirt off holding onto the hands of the next player so that it slides over the next player's arms. That's the trick but don't tell anyone until one team needs to catch up.