MISSION STATEMENT
At Leesburg Aquatics Swim Club, we are committed to fostering a positive and inclusive environment where swimmers of all ages and skill levels can thrive. Our mission is to promote excellence in swimming through comprehensive training programs, personal development, and community engagement. We strive to nurture a love for the sport, build strong team dynamics, and empower our members to achieve their full potential both in and out of the water. Together, we aim to inspire and be inspired, creating lasting memories and lifelong skills.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Website - www.titansswimming.org
Email - [email protected]
PAYMENT POLICIES
Swim Team
Members are required to set up automatic payment through the team website at the time of registration. Monthly dues will be charged and payments will be drafted on the 1st of every month. Annual USA Swimming registration will be charged every October 1st. Masters renewals are the responsibility of the athlete, and renewal proof must be submitted to team administration in order to remain in good standing. Meet fees will be billed according to each member’s participation, and will payment will be processed before each meet, regardless of date. Meet fees are non-refundable once the sign-up deadline has passed.
*The USA Swimming Outreach and Diversity Program "promotes inclusion by creating opportunities for people of all ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds to participate and advance in the sport of swimming." The Titans are proud participants of this program. If you think you may qualify financially for this program (insured under Medicaid or similar insurance program, meet federal poverty guidelines, or receive other forms of government subsidy), please speak directly to the Coaches for more information.
Cancellation or suspension of account procedure is as follows:
Members must email [email protected] by the 25th of the month prior. Example: if a member wishes to cancel or suspend the account in September the team must receive an email by August 25th. Automatic payments will continue regardless of attendance unless this notification is received.
MEMBERSHIP OBLIGATIONS
*Swim Team
It is the responsibility of each swimmer and their parents to stay informed of all team activities and schedules. Information is available on our team website. If you have questions about upcoming events or activities, please contact the team at our email address. Please be sure to check the website regularly for any announcements or schedule changes.
ALL team communications will run through our website. A valid email address AND SMS (cell phone number that can receive text messages) is necessary in order to create an account for your swimmer, and enable them to sign up for meets and other activities. If you don’t have an email address, you can create a free account through Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoo. Your swimmer cannot be registered for the team without an accurate and active email account.
All meets will be posted to the website. Athletes may sign-up for most meets on our website. Some meets will require forms that will be available at the pool during practice times, and it is the responsibility of the swimmer and parent to get a copy of these forms and to turn them in on time.
There is a MANDATORY Service Hours annual committment of 10-hours per family for volunteering. There will be many opportunities throughtout the year to earn these hours, with sign-ups posted as events become available. Obligations may include, but are not limited to: pre-selling of car wash tickets; volunteering during events such as car washes, Leesburg Bike Fest parking, Fruitland Park community events such as Hometown Christmas; or soliciting donations at local retailers. Failure to meet these service hour requirements will lead to a charge of $10/hour for non-worked hours, which will be automatically charged to your payment method of record on September 1st of every year. If your account is suspended for any reason prior to September 1st, your payment method will be automatically charged for any outstanding fees at the time of suspension. Families do have the option of paying this annual amount ($100) in full in lieu of working service hours. Contact Team Administration at [email protected] to make these arrangements.
The Titans organization, as mandated in our by-laws, will hold an annual parent meeting in early August. Attendance is required so that our Board of Directors elections can be held for the upcoming competition year, and the directors and coaches can update our families on policy changes.
*Coaches
Our coaching staff is dedicated to providing a quality program and enabling swimmers to be the best that they can be.
1. Transparent interaction: at all times coach and swimmer(s) interaction will take place in the open
2.It is the coach’s responsibility to assess and place swimmers in their designated swimming divisions and groups. Decisions are made based on age and ability level. The coach will decide when it is in the best interest of a swimmer to be moved into a more difficult training group.
3.The coaching staff will make the final decision regarding meets in which the club participates. The coaches will also make the final decision concerning which events individual swimmers are entered in.
4.While attending meets, the coaches will supervise warm-up/warm down, and offer pre-race advice and post-race constructive criticism & CRITIQUES.
*Parents
In order for Leesburg Aquatics to have a successful program we need cooperation and understanding amongst our swim parents, swimmers and coaches.
1.Be supportive. Your primary job as a swim parent is to provide all the love, support and encouragement your swimmer needs.
2.Let the coaches’ coach. It is important that swimmers relate to their coach when it comes to all matters concerning/involving swimming. The relationship between coach and swimmer is important for development and performance. It can be confusing for the swimmer when parents interfere with opinions about how the swimmer should swim or train. If, as a parent, you ever have a problem, concern or complaint, please see your swimmers’ coach.
3.Understand that your swimmer will not produce personal bests each time he/she is in a swim meet. Plateaus are a normal part of swimming, and it is important to provide the same level of support to your swimmer no matter what his/her results may have been at a meet.
4.Come and watch. We encourage parents to come and watch practices. When observing a practice, please leave a buffer space. Parents are invited to sit in the designated seating/observation areas (tables and lawn chairs). Parents are not permitted on deck near the lanes. Parent(s)/guardian/athletes must make an appointment to speak with coaches for before or after practice, not during.
5.Be punctual. Swimmers/parents, you must make it a priority to show up on time for practice. Late swimmers disrupt the flow of practice, which is impolite to those who are on time.
ATHLETE RESPONSIBILITIES
Leesburg Aquatics is a competitive program that is designed around the swimmers. As swimmers progress through the training groups, the responsibilities expected of them grow. Coaches will discuss with swimmers the higher expectations before advancing them into a higher practice group.
Basic expectations of all swimmers are:
- come to every practice prepared and ready to swim with 100% effort;
- bring their training equipment to all workouts (have spare caps, goggles and suits);
- and listen to their coaches when they are speaking.
~Required equipment
Swimmers are required to have their own practice equipment.
1.Bronze - kick board, fins, front-mounted snorkel
2.Silver, Gold, & Senior Group - kick board, fins, front-mounted snorkel, Strokemaker paddles, mesh equipment bag, water bottle, and jump rope
CODE OF CONDUCT
All swimmers, coaches and parents are considered to be team members and representatives of Leesburg Aquatics. Proper behavior by all team members has a positive influence on individual and team performance and reflects a strong image of our team. Compliance with this Code of Conduct is a condition of membership for all team members. You agree to abide by the requirements of this Code of Conduct and agree that you are subject to disciplinary consequences for any violation of the Code.
1.Team members are expected to display good sportsmanlike behavior toward fellow team members, competitors, coaches, officials, parents, family of team members, facility staff and the public at all times, including team practices, meets and social activities.
2.Team members will not engage in any inappropriate physical contact with another individual.
3.Team members will not use derogatory or abusive language of any kind.
4.Team members will not engage in bullying, harassing or hazing behavior of any kind. Such behavior may involve but is not limited to teasing, taunting, name-calling, rumor spreading or social exclusion.
5.Team members will not use social or electronic media to harass, threaten, or cause harm to another team member. Such behavior may involve but is not limited to threatening, derogatory, false or misleading emails or posting threatening or derogatory, false or misleading information or pictures online.
6.Parent team members shall not engage or discuss behavioral issues with any athletes outside their own immediate families.
7.Team members will respect the personnel, equipment and property at all practice and competition facilities and abide by all rules concerning use of those facilities.
8.Team members will not engage in any behaviors during team activities, or other instances in which team members can reasonably be construed as representing Leesburg Aquatics, which detracts from the image of the team.
9.Team members will not be engaged in any illegal conduct or inappropriate behavior which detracts from the image of the team or is detrimental to the team’s performance objectives.
Failure to comply with this Code of conduct may result in, but is not limited to, any of the following actions:
●Team members may be restricted from participating in some or all team activities including practice, meets and social activities.
●Team members may be sent home from team practice sessions, meets or team social activities.
●Team members may be suspended or dismissed from Leesburg Aquatics.
~Reporting procedures
●Team members are encouraged to immediately and fully report any incidents to their coach, verbally and in writing, and, if an athlete, to their parents.
●Coaches are responsible for following up with the individuals or group of individuals involved in any reported incidents.
All disciplinary decisions are within the sole discretion of Leesburg Aquatics coaches and are final. Such decisions are not subject to review. Disciplinary decisions are to be kept in confidence among Leesburg Aquatics staff and the team member and his/her family (unless disclosure or reporting is required by law). No refunds will be given as a result of a team member’s suspension or dismissal from the Leesburg Aquatics due to a violation of this Code of Conduct.
SWIM SEASONS
Swimming in Florida is a year- round sport broken into two seasons. The first is short course yards (SCY) season in which swimmers will train and compete in a 25-yard pool. This season runs from mid- August to mid- March. The second is long course and short course meters (LCM & SCM) season in which swimmers will compete in a 50 or 25-meter pool. LCM & SCM season runs from mid-March through August.
~Swim Meets
The Titans participate in many different types of meets throughout Florida. While we gather as a team on deck at these meets, expenses, transportation and overnight stays are the responsibility of each individual and family. The Team does not provide reimbursement for any costs incurred for these meets. The Coaches will select the events in which a swimmer will compete at all meets.
*Fun Meets/Recreational League Occasionally the Leesburg Aquatics will hold a fun meet at our own pool, or will participate in meets at nearby pools with other local teams. Swimmers will swim in multiple events with other members of the club. The idea behind this type of meet is to introduce our pre-competitive swimmers to meets and build team spirit.
*Developmental Meets (B/C meets) This type of meet does not have any qualifying time standards. Here swimmers compete to earn times in all the strokes. Once a swimmer has earned an “A” time he/she will no longer be able to swim that event at this type of meet. The Time Standards Report is available on our team website or the Florida Swimming website.
Open Meets- This type of meet is open to all swimmers 18 and younger.
Invitationals/(FLAGS)/Senior Championships/Sectionals/Junior & Senior Nationals All of these meets will have minimum qualifying times. See coaches for further information. Ages vary dependent upon meet sanction rules. Qualifying Times Standards are published each year by Florida Swimming and will be posted to our team website.
~Qualifying Travel Meets
As a swimmer progresses through the different levels of swim meets, the greater the distance the travel for these meets. Florida Age Group Championships (FLAGS) is a 14 and under meet in which the location will vary each season and be in different parts of Florida. Senior Sectionals, Junior/Senior Nationals - rotating location in any of the 50 states. Any travel meets in which swimmers ages 13 & under qualify, will require parental/guardian accompaniment. Any travel meets in which swimmers ages 14-17 qualify, while parental accompaniment is preferred, the team coaches will chaperone upon parent/guardian written permission/email request. Parents/Guardians will be required to sign release forms. All travel expenses are the responsibility of the swimmer and his/her family. The Team does not provide reimbursement for any costs incurred for these meets.
TEAM UNIFORM
Titan swimmers have a team uniform (swim suit) that they wear during competitions. This helps us to identify our swimmers in the water, demonstrates team unity, and makes it easier for the other teams to see who they are up against. Team suits can be purchased through our online team store at swimoutlet.com/leesburgtitans. Team suits must be unadorned black, one-piece suits.
DO NOT wear your competition suit to practice. Chlorine is very damaging to all suits, and limiting the use of your team suit to just competitions will make it last longer.
WEATHER CONSIDERATIONS
Florida tends to have unpredictable weather, especially during the summer months. Typically, practices will not be cancelled in advance. The coach will determine if practice needs to be cancelled once he/she is on the pool deck. While it may be raining at your house, the weather could be sunny and clear at the pool. If time permits, the coaches will send out cancellation notices thru our website via email, news blasts, or SMS (text messages).
Lightning and thunder also wreak havoc during the summer months. We are obliged to follow the rules of the facility and the guidelines of the American Red Cross for safety. These guidelines mandate that we be out of the water and in a safe place (cars or locker rooms) for 30 minutes following a lightning strike or roll of thunder. We do have a lightning detector at the pool, and will use this as a guide in making the determination to exit the water. Please understand and respect these guidelines. The safety of our swimmers is our number one concern.
