This study investigated the differences in exercise passion, sports confidence, and exercise addiction based on personal characteristics of swimming participants, and aimed to empirically examine the causal relationships among these factors. Questionnaires were distributed to 426 swimming participants from swimming pools in Metropolitan City B, and all 426 valid responses were used for the final analysis. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 26.0, including frequency analysis, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, correlation analysis, t-tests, and multiple regression analysis. The mediating effect was verified using PROCESS Macro. The results indicated significant differences in exercise passion and exercise addiction depending on swimming venue and competition experience, while no significant difference was found in sports confidence. There were significant differences in exercise passion, sports confidence, and exercise addiction based on competition experience. Furthermore, exercise passion significantly influenced sports confidence and exercise addiction. Sports confidence also significantly influenced exercise addiction. Finally, sports confidence exhibited a partial mediating effect on the relationship between exercise passion and exercise addiction. These findings suggest that personal characteristics significantly influence exercise passion and exercise addiction in swimming participants. The study highlights the importance of providing foundational data for promoting swimming as a recreational sport and emphasizing the need for information that strengthens the psychological foundations of swimming activities and promotes healthy exercise habits. It is anticipated that these findings will contribute to swimming participants engaging in healthy exercise and improving their quality of life through positive experiences.