The most decorated Olympic swimmer of all-time, jumps in the pool with kids in Peoria today, not only to teach the how to swim, but also to reinforce water safety.
Phelps says the number one goal in teaching kids how to swim is to make them comfortable.
As Olympian Michael Phelps walked up to the water at the Peoria Pool, the kids yelled, “Michael Phelps!” out of excitement.
When he got in and started the swim lesson, you could feel the energy in the air.
“Alright, Jake, are you ready?” said Phelps. “Come on over.”
You could tell, just about every kid he worked with was amped.
“Good job dude!” he said.
Phelps, who won 23 gold medals during his Olympic career, encouraged these little ones as they make a splash.
"Ready go!”
Phelps’ youngest son 6-month old Beckett, was among the crowd who attended with his wife Nicole.
“Say hi!” his wife Nicole said. “Say hi!”
She told us they got Beckett and their 2-year old son Boomer in the water for the first time at just 7 weeks old and they both did great!
Phelps told the crowd, he remembers what it was like when he was first learning how to swim.
“I was afraid to put my face under the water and now if you look at our 2-year old son, it’s the complete opposite,” he said. “He wants to see the fishies under water.”
“When a kid is new to the water, it’s finding a way to make them comfortable,” said Phelps.
The lesson was part of a big water event hosted by The Michael Phelps Foundation and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Pool Safely Campaign.
Together, they’re working to combat the public health crisis of fatal child drownings.
The children who took part in the event, like 8-year old Nate Gomez, finished the swim lesson feeling inspired.
“It was really good,” he said.
“We had a really great talk about him being the greatest athlete in the world and the kids were really excited about, you know, working hard at swimming and achieving something,” Nate’s mom Miranda said.
Nate says he’ll remember what Phelps told him in the pool, as he continues to improve his swim skills.
“It’s better to be in the deep water than the shallow water… the water pressure pulls you up,” he said.
“They’ve been really working really hard this year on improving their strength in the water,” his mom said. “It’s kind of like a nice little reward for them.”
The event was centered around the 10th anniversary of the Michael Phelps Foundation and to recognize the 10 years since the passage of the Virginia Graeme Baker (VGB) Pool & Spa Safety Act.
Visit the Michael Phelps Foundation page for more information.