What A Swim Meet Looks Like:

Swim meets a are lot of FUN!  They are a chance to showcase your swimming skills that you have been working on at practice!  You will have the opportunity to race in your very own lane against swimmers who have similar swim times as you.

Things to know before a meet:

1.  About 7-10 days before the swim meet you will need to log into your swim account and declare that you want to swim in the meet or that you do not want to swim in the meet. You must do this even if you do not want to compete.  
   1. Once you sign up and the deadline has passed you are not committed to attend but you are committed to pay – exceptions are only made for medical or illness reasons and pending the club has not already been charged fees.  Once the club pays the fees there are no refunds for the meet even in the event of last minute illness.  
2. You can select up to four events to swim in, but coaches have the final say and may add or delete swims depending on what events they think you should compete in either to optimize outcome or to challenge the swimmer.  
3. You will also swim in 1 or 2 relays in the swim meet.  You do not need to sign up for these as coaches automatically put you in a relay team.  IF you do not want to swim on a relay team you MUST inform the coaches at least a week before the meet.  You cannot opt out of a relay team last minute as it disqualifies all other teammates and this is not fair for everyone else.  
4. Most meets are drivable early morning the day of the meet, however if this is not your preference you should book hotel rooms early to ensure accommodations.
5. If you plan to volunteer at a meet (you must meet your minimum volunteer club requirement), you should sign up for volunteering using the tab present on the meet sign up page.
6. Each swimmer gets a team swim cap with registration every year.
7. Heat sheets may or may not be emailed 24 hours before a swim meet.  If they are provided by the host club they will be shared with our club asap and you should print yourself a copy at home if you wish to have one for the meet.  
   1. If heat sheets are not provided, you are able to follow the flow of the meet on Meet Mobile which is a paid swim meet app.  

Things to know the day of a meet:  

1.  Our club is designated an area for our team “Camp”.  This is where you can keep all your belongings for the day.  Items are pretty secure here, however our club nor the hosting club is responsible for any lost or stolen items.  
2. Swimmers should plan to be in camp no later than 15 minutes before our team warm up times – these are sent 1-2 days before the meet
3. Swimmers will be greeted by a coach in camp and will be led to the pool when it is time for warm ups to start.
4. Swimmers should be in their swim suit with cap, goggles and towel at least 15 minutes before warm ups. 
5. A swim meet follows a format arranged into events, heats and lanes to keep competition structured and to ensure it has a good flow.  Swimmer are generally divided into groups for competition based on age and gender wherever possible.  The age groups are:

• 6 and Under
• 7-8 Years
• 9-10 Years
• 11-12 Years
• 13-14 Years
• 15-17 Years
• 18 + Years
  1. Heats within events usually get progressively faster, meaning, the first heat to swim in an event will be the group with the slowest times and the last heat to swim in the same event will be the group with the fastest times. Heat sheets include swimmers' names, teams, and fastest previous times for easier location and reference.  
  2. If the swimmer has never swam an event before they are listed as an NT (No Time) and will be seeded in the first heat. 
  3. A common practise is to write in sharpie marker, your child’s event, event number, Heat number and lane number on their forearm for reference.  
     1. Eg:  50m Fr – 73- 5 – 2

1. Swim meets are assigned 2-4 camp parents based on how many swimmers are attending a meet.  Camp parents are selected by our Head Coach.  
   1. Camp Parent Responsibilities:
      1. To introduce themselves to swimmers at the beginning of the day
      2. To ensure they are aware of what events club swimmers are swimming in 
      3. To ensure the swimmers are ready prior to their swim event being called
      4. To ensure swimmers who do not have parents in camp are eating and drinking throughout the day especially for those under 12 years of age. 
      5. The goal is to make sure no swimmer misses a swim accidentally and that they have their caps, goggles and towels ready.  
      6. Makes sure the camp is organized and swimmers are behaving throughout the day
      7. Makes sure the camp is garbage free at the end of a meet
2. Swimmers should try to be in camp as much as possible when they are not swimming or at least let the camp parents know if they are leaving camp so we are not searching frantically for them when their events are coming near.  
3. Camps also have a Marshalling Area:  this is where swimmers are arranged into chairs coordinated again by events, heats and lanes and then are escorted to the pool to swim their events.  
4. Swimmers are encouraged to speak with their coaches before (if possible) and after their swims for coaching tips. 
5. Team support is always encouraged.  Watching and cheering for each other is a lot of fun and helps to show team engagement and support for one another.  
6. Awards happen directly after a swim meet and only the top three finishes in each age category are presented for individual swims and relays.  Any ribbons that are won are handed out to swimmers at their next swim practise by their coach.  
7. All camp areas are packed up and area should be as clean as it was when we arrived.

What to Bring to a swim meet:  - See parent handbook