A Guide to Blue Fins Officiating

Becoming a Swimming Official can be a very rewarding experience.  As it turns out it is also a necessary one for our swimmers.  All our officials are volunteers from the first time you step onto a deck to a Master Official, and all of these volunteers are needed to run all competitions across Canada.

Your first step to becoming an official is registration.  The registration procedure is similar to the steps taken for registering your swimmers on Sportlomo.

 

Swimming Canada - Officials Certification Pathway

 

The Blue Fins have their own staff to help with this process.

 

For any questions they can be reached at the following emails:

[email protected]        Tracy Harvey (Club Officials Administrator (COA))

[email protected]  Peter Tate ( Club Officials Chair (COC))

 
Official Apparel Requirements
 
HHBF White & Red Shirts can be purchased   HERE.
Swim Ontario Branded Apparel can be found   HERE.
 
 

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT OFFICIATING!:

 

Officials Positions

To find a list of the Official Positions and their role descriptions click HERE

 

Officials Training

In order to have competent and professional officials at our meets there is a variety of training required.

An Officials Certification Information and Pathway can be found HERE

Education starts with the first clinic:  Intro to Swimming Officiating/Safety Marshal.  These clinks are presented multiple times a year either by our own COC, at Central Region Clinics days for in-person seminars, or online through E-learning modules, or with Webinars.  Check your communication emails for times and places regularly.

Clinic and E-Module details can be found HERE.

 

Job Shadowing:

For those of you new to the sport of competitive swimming or new to a position on deck, Job Shadowing is always available, at our in-house meets as well as at away meets our club attends.  Simply email our COC with your request (the position, date and session) and arrangements will be made for you to follow an experienced official in the position to gain some experience.

To be a Level I official you need to do the following:

  • Take the Timer/Safety Marshall Clinic
  • Complete 2 successful deck evaluations as a Timer on the deck

To be a Level II official you need to do the following:

  • Take the Strokes and Turns Clinic
  • Complete 2 successful deck evaluations as an Inspector of Turns or Stroke Judge on the deck.
  • Take any ONE of the following clinics:  Chief Timer, Clerk, Starter, Chief Finish Judge, or Meet Manager
  • Complete 2 more successful deck evaluations in ONE of the positions above (the one you took the clinic for).

Officials Development Program

Swim Ontario has mandated that in order to host time trials, in-house competitions, and invitational swim meets the hosting club must comply with a minimum number of officials at each level.  The table below outlines those requirements.  We fall into the first category and have three options to comply with.

As you can see it is important for officials to continue their education and experience on deck to reach higher levels and keep the club in compliance.  Our COC, Peter Tate is always available for guidance and mentorship of officials as they progress.  If you are looking to advance, contact Peter and together we will work out a plan for moving up the levels.