Scratching Events at a Meet

SCRATCHING EVENTS

It goes without saying, but we'll say it anyways: if your swimmer is hurt, and cannot safely swim in a particular race or event, we will scratch the event. Each event your swimmer signs up for at a USA sanctioned event has a fee. These fees vary depending on the meets and the distance of the swims. When we submit entries to a hosting team for a meet they require us to pay via check for all those events. Once that entry file is submitted (on the registration deadline on our website) the cost of the meet entries is set in stone. We need to provide a check for that amount regardless of last minute scratches. If we decide to add events, depending on the meet, we may need to provide the difference in cash.

Recently there has been an influx of pre-race requests from your kids to scratch certain events. For reasons ranging from “My shoulder hurts” to “It is right before my focus event and I don't want to be tired” to “So-and-so is swimming it and I don't want to swim against them.” Obviously if there is any hint of injury we will investigate further. But the second & third reasons are topics we have to be really careful with.

                It’s not my focus event – there are a ton of factors that come into play over this one. Some of it has to do with meet performance, mindset, preparation, attitude, even down to performance at practice. This is a reason that your coaches will entertain. We will dig a little deeper and try to figure out why exactly the swimmer doesn't want to swim a certain race. Sometimes we will scratch if what we hear makes sense and there is a solid plan in place for the following focus event. Sometimes when we dig deeper we find out that there isn't a good plan, or the reason(s) for wanting to scratch are not sound. We'll always explain to your kids why, but we will not scratch the event. As your kids get older and attend more (bigger/more competitive) championship meets, sometimes the down time between races isn't very long. We've had kids swim in back to back heats in some cases. It's an important experience to have as a young swimmer, and to understand how to approach it better next time will be an invaluable lesson learned.

                I don't want to swim against so-and-so because they are faster than me– competition between teammates is healthy when the environment is right. We want to create an environment for your kids to feel confident, and have a sense of self-worth, as well as a sense of worth to the team.

Comparing themselves to their teammates is something that they will always do, but whether they are motivated or discouraged after that comparison is made is of extreme importance. 

Teammates are here to motivate you, cheer you on, congratulate you on achieving goals, and be there for support when you have trouble. The kids need to understand that having someone that they race against that may be challenging them is a good thing. It pushes them to push themselves. It is the reason why swimmers are seeded at meets with other athletes of comparable times. If your swimmer has voiced similar concerns to you please help us create an environment where all kids can feel a sense of pride, accomplishment, and self-worth. Emphasize the importance of being a good teammate, friend, and what it means to be a member of a team. Encourage your kids to cheer for their friends, and not to feel anxious or nervous about racing against them.