Lviv has begun work on making the city’s swimming pools accessible to people with disabilities and veterans. Mayor Andriy Sadovyi met with the owners of private and public sports complexes at the new indoor pool at the Training and Sports Base for Summer Sports of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.
It was here that Lviv’s first accessibility lift for people with disabilities was recently installed. The device supports loads of up to 227 kg and allows a person to enter and exit the water independently using a remote control. The equipment is already in use by veterans and other visitors to the complex.
«Swimming can replace several weeks of training in other sports. More than 58,000 people in Lviv have experience of the war. Some of them have lost limbs, and they have the right to train and recover in their own city. The city’s task is to ensure that people with disabilities have everything they need here. That is why I urge you to make your pools accessible. We must be prepared» — Andriy Sadovyi, Mayor of Lviv.
During the meeting, participants agreed to develop concrete plans for installing lifts in other pools across the city. The complexes identified as a priority are Sport Life, Medyk, Dynamo, Delfin, Eurosport, the Plyazh aquapark, Emily Resort, and Try Stykhii. The cost of a single device ranges from 150,000 to 300,000 hryvnias, depending on the design and complexity of installation. Funding is proposed to be shared between the city budget and private businesses.
The Director of the Sports Office of Lviv City Council, Anton Nikulin, noted that Lviv has one of the highest numbers of swimming pools in Ukraine, and that the city should therefore set an example in accessibility. The Sports Office pledged to prepare relevant proposals and bring them forward for further joint discussion.