United States was founded in 1891 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The Atlantic City Beach Patrol is currently the oldest active beach patrol in the United States. In 2009, 117 drowned at the nation's beaches; 21 drowned where lifeguards were on duty. There were 82,969 rescues reported from 114 reporting agencies. Consent In an active emergency, lifeguards are required to act, and to ask permission to give care in any situation. Ill or injured people can grant their informed consent for care. Someone who is unresponsive, confused or seriously injured or ill (such as in a nonfatal drowning) may not be able to grant consent. In these cases, the law assumes the victim would give consent if able. This is called implied consent, and also applies to an underage victim whose parent or guardian is not present. Competition Continuous training is necessary to maintain lifeguarding skills and knowledge. Formal competitions have developed as a way to encourage training, and also as a social activity. In Australia, the annual Surf Lifesaving competition at Kurrawa Beach on the Gold Coast is the largest athletic event in the world after the Olympic Games with tens of thousands of lifeguards competing. Lifeguard competitions include both physical events and technical (medical) events. Technical events are challenging accident simulations in which guards are evaluated on their adherence to treatment standards. These events are a subject of controversy amongst some lifeguards due to their subjectivity. Purely physical competitions have recently become more popular, often including various combinations of running, swimming, paddle boarding, and surf skiing. Most lifeguard competitions include an Ironman event that combines three different physical activities. Australian Surf Life Saving Championships, Perth Australia Risser's Beach, Nova Scotia Bournemouth Lifeguards Corps Regatta, UK Nova Scotia Surf League British Universities Lifesaving Clubs Association League Federacion Aragonesa de Salvamento y Socorrismo See also Beach Coastguard Dolphin dive Rip current First Aid Lifesaving Rescue Rescue swimmer Swimming pool References External links First aid Surf lifesaving Emergency services Lifeguards