Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They seem too different. It would make more sense to me once a boy hits 15…not 13. At 13-14 a lot of the boys and girls are still the same size…

This is not true at all.

Yes. It absolutely is.

This shouldn’t be a comparison of girls v. boys once they hit 13 and puberty is a factor. Yes, it’s rough for the brand new 13 year old boys that haven’t hit their growth spurt, but that has nothing to do with the girls. It's rough because some 14 year old boys have gone through puberty and are 6’3, whereas the girls have largely started to level their playing field by 13-14. For girls, the test is surviving 11-12 as a top swimmer, for boys it’s surviving 13-14.

It’s definitely a disadvantage for boys who are not early to puberty. It almost seems like there should be separate 13 and 14 year old times, at least on the boys’ side. The girls’ times barely get faster after 11-12.

Anonymous wrote:It kills my son that I’d he was a 13 year old girl he would have 6 cuts instead of 0

Huh? Not necessarily.

There are 13-14 boys who are built like full adult men, and that is what the cut times are based on and why they diverge so sharply from the girls’ times. But, for the majority of newly 13 year old boys, the cut times are simply unattainable because they are still built more like average 12 year old boys (which is closer to the size and build of the girls). They literally don’t yet have the testosterone at work yet that causes those times to get so much faster than the girls. So for many boys, the age 13 in particular is very difficult. By 14, more boys have hit puberty but there are still some who lag behind. For the boys who were elite as 12 and unders, it’s great if they can power through this 13-14 age group, particularly if they are very talented, because they often take off again around 15 and ultimately end up being the best senior swimmers. And the late blooming boys tend to eventually grow taller/bigger as well! Hang in there, boys!

For my 13-14 boy it was soul sucking but thankfully he is 16 now and he is back making cuts again and is improving faster than most kids because he is still growing pretty quickly. Hang in there!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They seem too different. It would make more sense to me once a boy hits 15…not 13. At 13-14 a lot of the boys and girls are still the same size…

This is not true at all.

I mean, it kind of is true for many. There are a LOT of 13 year old boys who haven’t really hit puberty, while a lot of 13 year old girls are full grown. For these boys, the cut times are insane.

I have a 12 year old girl who has been at a ton of meets with current 13-14 year old boys and generally the 13-14 boys are much bigger than the 13-14 girls. Many of those boys are built like full adult men. Sure, maybe the boys that are toward the bottom of the 13-14 group may not be bigger, but the vast majority are. There’s a reason why 13-14 is where you see the cut times between girls and boys start to diverge so sharply.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They seem too different. It would make more sense to me once a boy hits 15…not 13. At 13-14 a lot of the boys and girls are still the same size…

This is not true at all.

I mean, it kind of is true for many. There are a LOT of 13 year old boys who haven’t really hit puberty, while a lot of 13 year old girls are full grown. For these boys, the cut times are insane.

Anonymous wrote:They seem too different. It would make more sense to me once a boy hits 15…not 13. At 13-14 a lot of the boys and girls are still the same size…

This is not true at all.

It kills my son that I’d he was a 13 year old girl he would have 6 cuts instead of 0

They seem too different. It would make more sense to me once a boy hits 15…not 13. At 13-14 a lot of the boys and girls are still the same size…

Anonymous wrote:Yep they are. And for late growing boys especially 13-14 is the worst age group for swim.

I have one of those. He has a chance if he sticks with it but man it is tough.

Yes they are. If I had to guess it’s because for many girls they hit their highest growth rate in that 11-12 range. By the time a girl is 13, most have started their period and you will not see those huge gains in height and strength any more. A 13-14 year old boy is going to be bigger and stronger than a 13-14 year old girl, but you can’t say the same when they are 11-12.

Yep they are. And for late growing boys especially 13-14 is the worst age group for swim.

Is it me or is the jump between 11-12 time cuts and 13-14 cuts for boys when compared to the girls seem insane? Not complaining really…they just appear to be really really fast.