Humans have been swimming for thousands of years and one of the earliest depictions of the activity can be found in the Cave of Swimmers in the Gilf Kebir plateau of the Libyan desert. Archaeologists believe that these prehistoric drawings show people using the breaststroke or doggy paddle (it is possible that these movements are unrelated to swimming).
Although people have been swimming since the prehistoric era, swimming did not become a competitive sport until the 1800s. England is credited as the first country to participate in swimming as a recreation and competitive sport and the National Swimming Society of England organized these early competitions, which were immediately popular. Disclaimer: Mankind’s earliest sports grew out of survival skills. Wrestling is considered one of the very first, with depictions found in the Lascaux cave paintings in France dating back over 15,000 years. Running also has prehistoric roots, since speed was crucial for both hunting and escaping danger; by around 3,000 BCE, footraces were already being held in Egypt and Mesopotamia, and the very first Olympic event in Greece in 776 BCE was a sprint known as the stadion.
