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Affiliated to ASA East Midland Region and Derbyshire ASA
A Beginner’s Guide to Competitive Swimming
The following information is intended as a guide for parents of children who have just
joined City of Derby Swimming Club, those swimmers who have recently turned 9 and
also children who have moved from our Junior Coaching programme to the first
competitive squad: Cool Crocs.
Further detailed information is available on the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA)
website: www.britishswimming.org
ASA Swimmers Classification
City of Derby Swimming Club is affiliated to the ASA and our members are also
registered members.
Members of the club are allocated into one of three classification groups:
Category 1
This classification is for young swimmers who are starting off in swimming and for
those swimming in the Junior Coaching programme. Additionally, swimmers in our
competitive squads who are under 9 years of age are registered as category one
swimmers. Finally, swimmers over the age of 25 who swim with our Masters squad and
do not wish to compete, hold this classification. Category one membership provides
insurance whilst the swimmer is at training and at some low level (level 4) galas such as
our Club Championships.
Category 2
Swimmers over the age of 9 years who train with our competitive squads are
registered as category two swimmers. This level of classification provides access to
the British swimming rankings system and offers insurance to swimmers at training,
organised club events and competitions.
Category 3
This classification is for parent members and for all volunteers who offer their
services to ensure the smooth running of the club.
Affiliated to ASA East Midland Region and Derbyshire ASA
When you join City of Derby Swimming Club a membership fee is paid, this membership
fee is renewed each year in January. From this fee the Club then pays for the
member’s yearly registration to the ASA, the East Midlands ASA and Derbyshire
ASA. The fee offers insurance for volunteering and the administration of
safeguarding checks.
Galas and Open Meets
There are different types of swimming galas.
• Competitions where the club competes as a team against other clubs in leagues or
friendly Galas.
• Competitions where the swimmer competes individually in licensed meets.
Team Events
City of Derby Swimming club compete annually in the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire
junior league. This is a competition for junior swimmers aged 9-12 against most of the
other swimming clubs in the two counties. Derby typically field two teams in the
competition so that a large number of swimmers have the opportunity to experience
the excitement of representing their club.
The Arena League is a national competition that City of Derby participates in.
Consisting of individual and team relays, this exciting competition progresses through
regional rounds through to a National final where the top ten teams in the country
compete.
Licensed Galas/Open Meets
Licensed galas are those galas where the competitor is swimming for themselves to
gain times and sometimes medals! The club targets many meets throughout the year,
and as we are a competitive club, swimmers are expected to enter. The club calendar,
blog, website and social media will alert you to which competitions you should enter.
What is Licensing?
Swimming competitions do not have to be licensed, but where they are specific ASA
guidelines and rules must be followed. Licensed meets are graded level 1-4. Electronic
timing must be used on level 1-3 meets. Results from these are submitted to the ASA
for inclusion on the National Rankings database. www.britishswimming.org/rankingsrecords-results/rankings
Affiliated to ASA East Midland Region and Derbyshire ASA
Level One Meets are for experienced swimmers and are targeted by those trying
to qualify for National Championships.
Minimum entry times apply equivalent to the ASA ‘A’ Grade qualifying times.
Pools must be either 25m or 50m long.
Level Two Meets are intended for qualifying for Regional Championships.
Qualifying Times and Upper Limit times apply.
Pools must be 25m or 50m long.
Level Three Meets are intended for qualifying for County Championships, although
swimmers who achieve a Regional Qualifying Time at a level three competition may use
that time for entry into their Regional Championships.
Qualifying Times and Upper Limit times usually apply.
Pools must be 25m, 33m or 50m long.
Level Four Meets are intended for club swimmers and those beginning to enter
individual open competition.
Qualifying Times sometimes apply, Upper Limit times usually apply.
Pools must be at least 25m long.
What this means….
When you look at the details for an open gala they often state that they are Level 3,
Level 2 etc. The level indicates the standard of the meet, what the times can be used
for in the future and what level of officials are used. Also higher level galas are more
competitive; level 1 being the top level of competition. To qualify for county
championships it is usually stated that qualifying times have to be achieved at a Level
3 gala or above. For regional championships qualification has be at Level 3 or above. In
September each year City of Derby Swimming Club runs its own Club Championships as
a level 4 Licensed meet, it is a good opportunity for swimmers at Category 1
classification or those without any official times to get timings entered onto the ASA
Rankings website.
For level 1, 2 and 3 meets the swimmer needs to have a Category 2 member
classification.
Entry forms for Open meets are available as links from our website and from the
website of the club hosting the competition. You will need the swimmers ASA number
in order to complete the form. For most levels of competitions you will need to get the
entry time for each race off the ASA personal best times website.
www.swimmingresults.org/individualbest/ Enter the swimmer’s surname or ASA
Affiliated to ASA East Midland Region and Derbyshire ASA
number to view their PB’s. If your swimmer is entering a low level swimming
competition and they do not have an official time, ask your coach for advice. Guessing
times or entering a time that you would like your swimmer to achieve is never a good
idea and usually leads to frustration and unrealistic expectations.
There is always an entry fee for each race, between £4 and £7. Entries along with
payment are submitted to squad reps by the advertised closing date.
How Does a Team Gala work?
Team Selection
The Head Coach makes the selections for the team galas initially selecting the
swimmers with the best times off the ASA ranking system. The head coach may also
take into account other factors such as a candidate’s current swimming performance.
Time trials are arranged for younger swimmers who may not have official times.
Selection to a team is considered a great honour, and swimmers should make every
effort to participate if chosen to represent the club.
What to Take
A swimmer needs two costumes or racing suits, two pairs of goggles, two towels, a club
shirt and two club hats.
Swimmers are always hungry and pool environments are usually hot; they will need
plenty of drinks and possibly some food.
At the Gala
Ensure that the swimmers arrive in good time for the start a competition. Try to
arrive half an hour before a warm up starts as the swimmers are expected to stretch
before entering the pool. You will also have trouble parking if you arrive late as swim
meets are usually well supported.
Once at the gala the swimmers go off and change and then have to go poolside by
themselves to sit with their club mates. Parents are not always allowed in changing
rooms and are never allowed poolside. This can be a bit daunting, especially for the
younger swimmers competing in their first couple of galas but be reassured that City
of Derby have an army of amazing volunteers who team manage, get the children to
the right place at the right time and coach the children during competition.
What do the parents and supporters do? Sit and cheer on the swimmers – if you’re
lucky the pool will have proper tiered spectator seating, otherwise you end up sitting
very close to the pool. There is usually a small charge for spectators and sometimes a
raffle to raise funds for the hosting club. A programme is usually available to
Affiliated to ASA East Midland Region and Derbyshire ASA
purchase; this will enable you to follow the events running order and ensure that you
catch your childs swim.
The Swimming
Most open meet galas are split into two or more sessions with a separate warm up for
each session. The warm up takes about an hour with the swimmers split into
older/younger boys and girls.
At most open galas each event is ranked in the order of the swimmer’s entry time
(their PB may have changed since the entry was made). The event is then swum in
heats starting with the slowest times irrespective of age. As a result it is unlikely that
a swimmer will be completely outclassed (or completely out class the other swimmers)
in their particular heat.
Once the event is complete the recorded times are sorted out and the swimmers
sorted into their age groups and the results posted, at which point you find out
whether you have a medal winner.
Trophies/medals are awarded for anywhere between the top three and top six in each
of the age groups. For most swimmers though, a PB is as good as a medal!
P.B.s
For those that don’t know, a PB is a personal best time.
PB’s are recorded by the club but you may also find it useful to keep a personal
record at home.
The ASA also holds a database of all official times recorded at licensed open galas.
These are the times needed for most meet entries.
www.swimmingresults.org/individualbest/
Once your child has recorded official times at a licensed gala you can go to the ASA
web site to see where your child is ranked at county, regional and national level.
It is at this point you realise how many competitive swimmers there are, and just how
good some are! Don’t get carried away thinking you have potential Olympic
prodigy; there are around 400,000 competitive swimmers in the UK, of which about 20
go to the Olympics. Enjoy the journey, don’t worry too much about the destination!