Wave Way
Our mission is to develop the leaders of tomorrow through competitive swimming. We believe that swimming is a medium through which SPORTSMANSHIP, CONNECTION, PRIDE, and EXCELLENCE are developed and learned. Our goal is that these are characteristics that will transcend the pool. We will provide each member of our team with the coaching, opportunities and the process to achieve their greatness in competitive swimming and therefore in life.
Vision
The vision of Wave Aquatics is to enrich the lives in the communities we serve:
- Our aim is to be the model age group program in this country offering our athletes the right team and atmosphere to achieve their highest level of success.
- Our aim is to ensure we are always putting the athletes' needs and goals first in everything we do, not just as coaching staff, but as a team (including the athletes, parents, coaches, board, and organization).
- Our aim is to teach Wave athletes that failure is a part of life and only through failure can EXCELLENCE be achieved as athletes learn and grow from each misstep.
- Our aim is to take this team to new heights by creating a culture of EXCELLENCE within our athletes, families, coaches, and team.
This culture of EXCELLENCE will be achieved through instilling our core values of:
SPORTSMANSHIP
CONNECTION
PRIDE
We will hold our athletes, families, and staff to very high standards and distinguish ourselves as a team while maintaining a safe (physically and mentally) environment for our athletes.
Core Values
When an athlete first joins Wave, they will learn SPORTSMANSHIP. Then they develop a CONNECTION to Wave, swimming, their teammates, and their coaches. Over time, they learn to take PRIDE in their swimming, their training, their team, and their actions. Once those three are met, then a swimmer begins to reach their own personal level of EXCELLENCE in the sport of swimming and in life as whole.
Our Core Values are:
Sportsmanship – Respect for the sport, teammates, coaches, parents and team, integrity in all their actions and empathy for all those around them.
Specific Goals and Examples for Sportsmanship:
o Building teammates up/Support teammates
o Cheering
o Challenging your teammates to be their best
o Respect your opponents, officials, and volunteers
o Lead by example
Connection – Positive bonds and social relationships in and out of the sport, a connection built over time to Wave, swimming, teammates, coaches, with a goal of building community within the local community, LSC, and national level of the sport.
Specific Goals and Examples for Connection:
o Trust your coaches
o Engage with Wave family
o Learn to love the sport
o Know your teammates (know their goals, but also know the person)
Pride – Self-belief, resilience, mental toughness, positive self-worth, developed over time with their commitment to their team, their training, their coaches, and their teammates.
Specific Goals and Examples for Pride:
o Setting Goals
o Doing things correctly and fully (even when the coach isn’t looking)
o Build team pride
o Training to succeed at your goals, at team goals, and at your teammate’s goals
WAVE EXCELLENCE is a way of life. We strive to be our individual best in everything we do: life, work, school, relationships, and of course sports.
Specific Goals and Examples for Excellence:
o Know and follow all rules
o Know personal best times
o Hit and achieve your personal level of success
o Fail with class and without fear
Wave Long Term Team Goals
Each day athletes, coaches, and parents should leave practice feeling like they made some sort of progress towards our Long-Term Team Goals. While some days may be spent towards certain goals, all goals are equally important and through a season athletes should be making progress to both development in our Cover Values but also tracking forward in the below long-term goals.
- Giving our athletes, coaches, and parents a positive experience in the sport of swimming, while developing a long-lasting bond with the sport and Wave Aquatics.
- Fostering and developing positive attributes and our core values in our athletes through Wave training and goal setting.
- Instilling the importance of a "work ethic" in our swimmers. Success comes through hard work and dedication over time. Success is not a linear path, but a long-term process that takes patience and effort.
- Developing fearless athletes who embrace challenges without a worry of failure, knowing that Wave coaches and parents have ensured a safe space for them to learn and grow regardless of outcome.
- Promoting leadership and involvement within the sport and community.
- Preparing our swimmers to excel in college, both academically and athletically.
- Teach and develop athletes who are knowledgeable in the sport. Every Wave athlete who graduates from Wave should be able to join any swim team and start a coaching career with the knowledge needed to do so.
- Developing athletes who are independent and not coach reliant, i.e., teaching athletes how to make decisions for themselves and problem solve for their own success.
- Developing mental toughness and coping skills to handle stress, anxiety, pressure, and emotions regarding hard training and competition.
- Reaching everyone’s personal level of true greatness and excellence in the sport of swimming and life.
By aiming to hit each of these goals in some capacity at every single day of practice, at each competition throughout the year, and at all team events, the compounding effect will help create athletes who leave Wave ready to achieve a high level of success and excellence in life.
