Stand Up Paddling: 50 percent more accidents
Glide calmly and weightlessly over the water. The trendy sport of Stand Up Paddling, or SUP for short, has found many followers in recent years. But this trendy leisure activity is not so calm and harmless. A look at the accident statistics shows that UVG insurers register around 500 stand up paddling accidents per year. Since the start of the boom in 2015, accidents have increased by around 50 percent.
Most of the accidents in Stand Up Paddling are Falls. In the process, stand-up paddlers lose their balance, hit the board or injure themselves underwater on the bottom. Often they also injure themselves with the paddle.
Injuries of the lower parts of the body
About half of the injuries affect the lower extremities. 12 percent of these are knee injuries. These are mainly dislocations, sprains, strains, and muscle, tendon and meniscus injuries. There are also often open wounds on the feet due to stepping on sharp stones on the lake or sea floor. There are also injuries to the hands and fingers, as well as to the torso and buttocks. Striking the paddle itself causes injuries to the face and teeth.
More accidents on Swiss lakes
Around two thirds of the Accidents with SUP occur in the summer months of June, July and August on Swiss lakes. In the other months, accidents occur mainly on the sea. "Summer generally attracts more recreational athletes into and onto the water. If it is then a beautiful and long-lasting summer, the accident figures also rise," confirms Peter Andermatt, statistician at Suva.
People over 30 are most affected
More than 90 percent of those involved in accidents are older than 30. A third of them are women. "Stand up paddling looks very simple at first glance, but it requires a lot of skill. This is often underestimated," knows Samuli Aegerter, recreational safety expert at Suva. "Simply getting on the board and paddling doesn't work. You also need to take a few safety measures to make sure you get back to shore unharmed," says Aegerter.
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