NGV behind new push to bring swimming back to Yarra

Photo above: Tennis player Jim Courier jumped into Yarra river after winning the 1992 Australian Open

We could one day be swimming in the Yarra again.

Organisations including the National Gallery of Victoria want to revisit the issue, claiming we don’t make enough of our waterfront.

The NGV’s design and architecture curator Ewan McEoin has told the Herald Sun the river attracts tens of thousands of people, and yet we never actually put our feet in it.

He cites the rebirth of the Thames as inspiration.

People are again swimming in the London river, even though it was one of the most heavily polluted urban river’s in the world.

The NGV and other groups are focusing on a dedicated swimming site at Enterprize Park in the city, where there are already plans for an outdoor swimming pool.

European-inspired upgrade proposed for banks of the Yarra, featuring 50m pool