How Are A Meet Lineups Determined on Your Team?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He probably just wants to make sure your kid doesn’t reach his full potential…

This is what it feels like to my son. That his coach doesn’t really care about his development or prioritizes others over him. My natural inclination is not to say anything to the coach but I hate that my son is feeling this way. It’s a tough age to move to a new place, and he’s worked hard to get to where he is as a swimmer. At the very least, I hope the coach explains his decision making to my son, and the other swimmers impacted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does your team determine which swimmers are selected for A meets, and are those guidelines communicated to families?

This is our first year on a new summer swim team after a move, so we’re still learning how things work here. The meet program came out this morning, and I noticed that some swimmers, including my son, are not entered in certain events, while other swimmers with slower seed times are entered in those events.

I’m not looking to challenge coaching decisions. I know there are often factors beyond raw times that go into meet entries. I’m mostly trying to understand how the process works in this area and whether other teams provide published criteria or explanations for A-meet selections.

I tried explaining to my son that the coach may be trying to make the meet experience as inclusive as possible and give more swimmers opportunities to compete, but that didn’t land particularly well with my 13 year-old when he knows he has a faster time than some of the swimmers entered in those events, especially when he is only swimming 1 event and others are swimming 3 and the IM.

I’d appreciate hearing how your teams handle this. Thanks!

I am a team rep and sometimes when my coach seeds he will put kids in one event because he doesn't think that they have the stamina to swim multiple events and still get the same times. He often wants to "rest up" swimmers and limit their events. Coaches also try and be inclusive to get swimmers in, if a third lane is not going to get you points, you might put a kid in to have more kids on deck, which can help with scratches. Something else that is very much the reality - if your Ref or S&T are needed to work the meet - you have to make sure that they have a kid swimming in the meet. Generally key officials/volunteers have the faster kids but if a group is really competitive some creative seeding will happen to get a kid in the meet, particularly a third lane where you are not going to score points, to make sure you have the Official you need on deck.

The bolded is not the reality at our pool. All of our officials, myself included, have worked meets in which our kids have not swum. Our team needs officials, our officials step up, separate from whether our kids are swimming. Does that happen every meet, every week, no, but I have never seen a kid chosen solely because we needed a starter or whatever.

Our coach goes by seed times and availability, almost to a fault. A kid who is a hair faster gets four events while the very slightly slower swimmer gets one - stamina does become an issue, as noted above. But that being said, yeah, if my kid were passed over in multiple events for kids with slower times, I'd be politely asking for the rationale.

[Anonymous]

A slower swimmer might be seeded in an event instead of your son if the coach feels the slower swimmer will still score points in that event. Your son might then be seeded in a different event, even if not his best stroke, if the team needs him to score points there.

[Anonymous]

At our pool, if there are two swimmers with similar times, the preference seems to go towards the boys that wear briefs, rather than jammers. Because the boys that wear briefs look more like “real swimmers”.

I don’t know how they select the girls with close times, but I heard it might be related to parental volunteer points on a rolling 3 week lag.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I did declare him as available and the times I’m talking about are from this summer, time trials and the first B meet.

Did you join the group of parents that provides initial seeding recommendations to the coach? Based on my experience, if you want your kid in their favorite events, having a seat in the parent seeding meeting is key.

This is not a thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He probably just wants to make sure your kid doesn’t reach his full potential…

This is what it feels like to my son. That his coach doesn’t really care about his development or prioritizes others over him. My natural inclination is not to say anything to the coach but I hate that my son is feeling this way. It’s a tough age to move to a new place, and he’s worked hard to get to where he is as a swimmer. At the very least, I hope the coach explains his decision making to my son, and the other swimmers impacted.

Your kid is 13, correct? Then they should be able to ask the coach directly. Coaches want swimmers who show initiative.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like this isn't NVSL since I don't think there are meets yet and I believe most teams have time trials this weekend (also there aren't IMs at most NVSL meets right?).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I did declare him as available and the times I’m talking about are from this summer, time trials and the first B meet.

Just to make sure, did your kid DQ at TT or in the B meet? You will often get a time for those meets but the coach will know if the swim stroke is legal or not despite a provided time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like this isn't NVSL since I don't think there are meets yet and I believe most teams have time trials this weekend (also there aren't IMs at most NVSL meets right?).

I know it’s shocking, but there are other area summer leagues that are talked about on this board 🙄

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I did declare him as available and the times I’m talking about are from this summer, time trials and the first B meet.

This merits an inquiry, because what you’re describing is not right and what perpetuates the idea that summer swim is all about playing favorites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I did declare him as available and the times I’m talking about are from this summer, time trials and the first B meet.

Just to make sure, did your kid DQ at TT or in the B meet? You will often get a time for those meets but the coach will know if the swim stroke is legal or not despite a provided time.

No DQs. Legal swims in all 4 strokes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At our pool, if there are two swimmers with similar times, the preference seems to go towards the boys that wear briefs, rather than jammers. Because the boys that wear briefs look more like “real swimmers”.

I don’t know how they select the girls with close times, but I heard it might be related to parental volunteer points on a rolling 3 week lag.

I'm sorry, what?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I did declare him as available and the times I’m talking about are from this summer, time trials and the first B meet.

Just to make sure, did your kid DQ at TT or in the B meet? You will often get a time for those meets but the coach will know if the swim stroke is legal or not despite a provided time.

No DQs. Legal swims in all 4 strokes.

Then yeah, as several people have said ask. If you're not NVSL I don't know if you have a Team Rep type person, but that's who we have to go to. I've never had a situation like this but any questions I have always had my kids go to the coach/es first.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our pool, if there are two swimmers with similar times, the preference seems to go towards the boys that wear briefs, rather than jammers. Because the boys that wear briefs look more like “real swimmers”.

I don’t know how they select the girls with close times, but I heard it might be related to parental volunteer points on a rolling 3 week lag.

I'm sorry, what?

Someone is just being stupid on this thread.

[Anonymous]

I’m sorry. There’s definitely some strategy that goes into seeding, along with the times. There was a year when my daughter kept getting put in backstroke because she could score points while there were a bunch of kids who were slower than her who could still score points in free. That being said, it doesn’t make any sense to put a faster kid in only 1 event. We’ve been swimming for almost 15 years and there are definitely coaches/reps who play favorites - especially with the first meet of the season. I’ve seen multiple swimmers who had a slow time trials suddenly in an A meet in the center lane because someone put in a “coaches time” for a swimmer.