mming ability with d
d doing less harm to joints and ▓muscles as a water sport," said Liu Bo, head of the
Division of Sports Science and Physical Education.Viewing the ability to swim as a must for students to earn their degrees is not something new in the top university, as this ability was listed ▓on its school regulations in the early 20th century."As ▓early as 90 years ago, Tsinghua University required
th▓at students cannot graduate from the university or study overseas if t▓hey cannot swim, though the requirement didn't work later ▓on since the swimming pools at the campus could not accommodate incre▓asingly more students," said Liu.Many alumni of the prestigious university had to▓ meet the swimming challenge.Renowned writer Liang Shih-chiu, entering Tsinghua University in 1915, failed the swimming test before his graduation, and he had to do his best
at the make-up examinati
egrees, "as a re Justo
on. Luckily his second endeavor got a pass from the head of the Division of Sports S
cience and Physical Education.Ke Zhao, an academician with Chinese Academy of Sciences, said he was lucky enough to escape the swimming course since he ▓transferred to Tsinghua University in his third year of univ▓ersity, when he didn't need to take a physical education course. Ke▓ admitted he didn't like sports and cannot swim, so he would have definitely fa▓iled the swimming test if he had taken one.Plans are for freshmen to take the test during their
military training. In the test, students will pass the test if they can swim 50 meters, no matter whether they choose the breaststroke, butterfly stroke, freestyle or backstroke. Those failing the test have to take a compulsory swimming▓ course.Tsinghua University is not the first Chinese university to require swimming as a compulsory course.Peking University and Xiamen University in East China's Fujian province have listed swimming as a compulsory co
u▓rse for students.With t
he new regulations, many high school students aiming to enter Tsinghua University expressed their worrie
