Participation Policy

Background:

The Waverly Woods swim team is a summer swim team that encourages swimmers of all levels to enjoy the competitive sport of swimming. Summer swim teams are typically community based and enjoy an atmosphere that is less stringent than that of year-round swim teams. However, in an effort to promote team spirit and to set guidelines that promote consistency as well as fairness, we have established the following team participation policies.

Swim Team Practice Policy:

Swimmers are expected to attend practices with the Waverly Woods Swim Team. The practice schedule offers both morning and evening practice times for each practice group. There are 4 morning practices (Tues-Fri), 4 evening practices (Mon-Thurs), and one start and turn practice (Friday evening). Swimmers can attend either the morning practices or the evening practices for their age category. All swimmers are welcome at the Start and Turn Friday practices. Swimmers should attend a minimum of 8 practices through-out the summer season.

Swim Meet Minimum Participation Policy:

Recognizing that it is a summer league and prime vacation time, swimmers are encouraged to participate in as many swim meets as possible. Swimmers must have participated in a minimum of three swim meets (including time trials) in order to have earned the team trophy awarded at the end of the season. For swimmers that start the season on pre-team and transition to the swim team prior to the end of the season, the minimum number of swim meets required for a trophy will the smaller of three meets or the number of meets remaining in the season. Swimmers that remain on pre-team for the whole season (and are thus not elegible for meet participation) will earn a pre-team trophy.

Divisional Championship and Straehle Invitational Meet Eligibility and Qualification:

League rules state that competitors must have swum in a minimum of 2 dual meets during the current season to be eligible to qualify for Divisional Championships as well as the Straehle Invitational. Swimmers (Division 4 – 9) may be entered in 4 events total (3 events plus a relay). In Divisions 1 through 3, swimmers may be entered in 3 events total (2 events plus a relay, or 3 individual). For Divisionals, each team may enter no more than three swimmers in each individual event and one relay team for each relay event.

The Waverly Woods Swim Team’s policy is that swimmers must have competed in a minimum of 2 dual swim meets to be eligible for entry in the Divisional Championship Meet as well as the Straehle Individual Championship Invitational Meet. Swimmers are also encouraged to attend at a minimum 8 practices through-out the summer season. For the Divisional Meet, generally swimmers will be selected by the coaching staff based on fastest/best times for individual events swum during the current season, however this is also based upon the coaches’ discretion. Refer to the Divisional Championship Meet Policy for details relating to swimmer selection for this meet. The Straehle Invitational Meet has qualifying times that swimmers must swim to be eligible to participate at the Invitational meet.