Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only loosely. Relays feel like a team competition, but aside from that a kid could go to a meet and never interact with anyone else from the “team.” There is socializing outside of the swimming, and some cheering for other swimmers, but there is no actual teamwork aside from relays.

Do you mean aside from hours upon hours practicing together? You know not every second = face underwater, right?

What would we do without you?

"There is no actual teamwork aside from relays." This is so dumb--you either weren't a swimmer, or you were a pretty bad one.

Coach works with team to strategize about who will train and swim what event. Teammates help each other with technique, starts, turns, drills, etc. One of my best memories from my high school team was being a freshman and having essentially a two-practice "master class" with the superstar butterfly senior, who helped improve both the timing/rhythm of my kicks, and the angle of my head during breaths. Sometimes, my coach would leave to adjust the chemicals, etc., and the seniors would decide on the next drill set. You work together, every day.

Depends. I played field hockey, ran track and swam. Running and swimming have team aspects like working out with others and rooting for team mates and having them support you. However sports like field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, football, etc require you to know where your other team members are on the field and act as part of a group.

It’s like tennis. There may technically be a tennis team, and sometimes they play in doubles, and they practice together, but they don’t need the team in order to function as a competitive tennis player. It’s not the same as soccer, football, basketball, lacrosse, etc., where you need to play with a team to play the sport at all.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meh. My kids play baseball, basketball, soccer, field hockey. Those are true team sports. They also do gymnastics, diving, track and field and swimming - those are individual sports to me with a strong team element. You care about your team and it is great when you win but the important thing at the end of the day seems to be individual performance more. Though when my daughter's team won track she was very happy that her finish helped push them over the line.

Impossible for your kids to do all those seriously unless some do some and other do others. Or your kids dabble and aren’t serious about any or most of them b

Oh my goodness are you the insufferable about everything or just the sports and leisure activities of children?

NP. I agree with pp that a kid who is on the swim team for 3 years straight, competes in meets, goes to morning practice and participates in Winter Swim.....is probably on more of a team sport than the dabbler who tries every sport out there.

FWIW, both of my kids have both dabbled at times and participated in team sports at times. It's all good.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only loosely. Relays feel like a team competition, but aside from that a kid could go to a meet and never interact with anyone else from the “team.” There is socializing outside of the swimming, and some cheering for other swimmers, but there is no actual teamwork aside from relays.

Do you mean aside from hours upon hours practicing together? You know not every second = face underwater, right?

What would we do without you?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only loosely. Relays feel like a team competition, but aside from that a kid could go to a meet and never interact with anyone else from the “team.” There is socializing outside of the swimming, and some cheering for other swimmers, but there is no actual teamwork aside from relays.

Do you mean aside from hours upon hours practicing together? You know not every second = face underwater, right?

They aren't practicing together. A soccer player can go practice skills solo, but not soccer. That is because soccer is a team sport. A swimmer can practice skills everywhere, or they could practice swimming anywhere. As long as their is a pool there is an opportunity to practice their individual sport. That is not the case to someone with a soccer ball.

Anonymous wrote:Only loosely. Relays feel like a team competition, but aside from that a kid could go to a meet and never interact with anyone else from the “team.” There is socializing outside of the swimming, and some cheering for other swimmers, but there is no actual teamwork aside from relays.

Do you mean aside from hours upon hours practicing together? You know not every second = face underwater, right?

They're as much of a team sport as team gymnastics and figure skating. You don't need to create chemistry among the participants so long as they individually perform well. Does it create camaraderie? Sure. But it require chemistry? No.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When Team A plays Team B, one team accrues more points than the other and that team WINS. Team sport.

Yes- Golf teams and fencing teams and debate teams work the same way- of still call them all solo sports. No team goes to the olympics- individuals go in these events.

And then they are on the Olympic Team.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meh. My kids play baseball, basketball, soccer, field hockey. Those are true team sports. They also do gymnastics, diving, track and field and swimming - those are individual sports to me with a strong team element. You care about your team and it is great when you win but the important thing at the end of the day seems to be individual performance more. Though when my daughter's team won track she was very happy that her finish helped push them over the line.

Impossible for your kids to do all those seriously unless some do some and other do others. Or your kids dabble and aren’t serious about any or most of them b

Oh my goodness are you the insufferable about everything or just the sports and leisure activities of children?

Anonymous wrote:Meh. My kids play baseball, basketball, soccer, field hockey. Those are true team sports. They also do gymnastics, diving, track and field and swimming - those are individual sports to me with a strong team element. You care about your team and it is great when you win but the important thing at the end of the day seems to be individual performance more. Though when my daughter's team won track she was very happy that her finish helped push them over the line.

Impossible for your kids to do all those seriously unless some do some and other do others. Or your kids dabble and aren’t serious about any or most of them b

Anonymous wrote:When Team A plays Team B, one team accrues more points than the other and that team WINS. Team sport.

Yes- Golf teams and fencing teams and debate teams work the same way- of still call them all solo sports. No team goes to the olympics- individuals go in these events.

No.

Meh. My kids play baseball, basketball, soccer, field hockey. Those are true team sports. They also do gymnastics, diving, track and field and swimming - those are individual sports to me with a strong team element. You care about your team and it is great when you win but the important thing at the end of the day seems to be individual performance more. Though when my daughter's team won track she was very happy that her finish helped push them over the line.

Absolutely