In one of the most bizarre developments to occur in leisure swimming, reports have been flooding in of piranha sightings in the borough's two public pools.

But before swimmers flee for the sanctuary of distant communal baths, they should know that the heel-snapping terror comes not from the feared fish of South America, but human beings.

Pool rage, the mischievous baby brother of road rage, has officially reached our chlorinated shores after an article detailing the antics of aquatic aggressors appeared in a national Sunday newspaper.

It seems very few of us are able to unwind in the pool without some Olympic hopeful barging past and leaving us irritated, insulted or even injured.

John Abbott of Swan Lane, Whetstone, visits the Finchley Lido twice a week. "One guy screamed at me after I brushed past him in the pool with my foot," he explained.

"The next time we approached each other he was coming straight at me so I swerved and had to get out."

Staff at the council-run Finchley Lido and Copthall are only too aware of the growing phenomenon; a lifeguard and a swimmer from the Lido are considering legal action after an alleged attack in which someone demanded extra pool time.

According to David Ball, professor of risk management at Middlesex University, it is all a symptom of modern times.

"There is more aggression now than there was ten years ago because of the pace of everyday life. People are more self-centred and more inclined to fly off the handle.

"Anything to do with water is fairly risky," he said. "If people are getting enraged they should seek appropriate advice and anyone who is threatened should get out of the pool and walk away."

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