Entre rios, mares e piscinas: a natação nas cidades de São Paulo e Fortaleza (décadas de 1920 a 1940)

Abstract

Introduction: Swimming is a practice with multiple meanings, ranging from the act of survival to simple fun. Swimming as a sport modality was instituted in some Brazilian capitals in the period between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, initially in natural environments such as rivers and seas, and later, in swimming pools. Objectives: this article aims to analyze and discuss the disputes around the legitimacy of the swimming practice in two Brazilian cities, Sao Paulo and Fortaleza, between the 1920s and 1940s. Methodology: it is a historical-documentary research that gathered sources of newspapers, magazines and images found in the press of the period of both cities and publications produced by clubs in Sao Paulo. Results and discussion: swimming as an element of a physical culture was promoted in the rivers and seas of cities in the early 20th century. Gradually, precepts such as universality and time control, components of its increasing sportsmanship, were responsible for bringing this practice to a new space, the pools. Conclusions: we consider that, although sportsmanship has taken place in a more or less similar way in both cities, the legitimation of spaces for swimming was distinct.