The Fred
Cumming, GA
September 30-October 1,2023
Officials certification course will be held at this competition
App to officiate is here
2023 U.S. Paralympics Swimming National Championships
Orlando, FL
December 15-17,2023
App to officiate is here
Starting immediately, we are training all officials to use the command “take your marks”. This appears in the rulebook in several places. I believe the following list is exhaustive.
101.1.2C and D
105.3 Figure 1 C and E
105.3 Figure 2 D and F
701.2.2B
701.17.4
Differences Between USA Swimming and USMS Rules – Forward Start
In all instances where the command “take your mark” has been used, Starters should now use the command “take your marks”. While a minimal change on paper, it’s likely this new language will take some getting used to. There will be no instruction on a correction for saying the command the old way. If you accidentally say take “your mark”, so long as the athletes assume their starting positions, you do not need to stand them up. Rather you should continue the starting sequence.
If you have any questions or concerns about this change, please do not hesitate to reach out to your LSC Officials’ Chair, Matt Wilson, your USA Swimming Officials’ Chair, or me.
Thank you for your time and your dedication to our sport.
With best regards,
Derek Paul
Chair, USA Swimming Rules & Regulations Committee
