Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

News flash: no one cares about your opinions on how the sport of swimming could be improved. They are designed for the be as inclusive as possible for the swimmers, not the convenience of the parents. No one is forcing you to stay at the meet the entire time if it’s so painful for you. You can drop a kid off and come back later, or send them with a trusted family of a teammate. I remember going to big meets where there were 20 heats of 500 free. You think my parents sat through that? Nope. And don’t tell yourself that your kids absolutely need you to be there to watch every single race. They don’t. That’s something over involved parents tell themselves to justify their behavior. Swimming is for the participants, not the parents.

How dare someone express an opinion on the sport of swimming on a *checks notes* message board thread about swimming. If you’re going to attempt snark at least try to be clever. Inclusivity is not being threatened by not allowing kids to swim in individual events they are not ready for. But I know it’s super important that if back in the day people had to sit through interminable meets, people still need to experience that. Sorry that your coach back in the day sucked and made you sit through 20 heats of the 500 free before your first swim. My kid’s coach gives them an appropriate arrival time in that situation.

I was there to swim the 500, genius. Keep complaining though. I’m sure the USA swimming leadership is monitoring this thread and will get right on making these reforms. Have you tried calling the manager?

The pettiness of parents at sporting events never ceases to amaze me.

My DD had just finished chemotherapy and was going a non-competitive stroke and turn clinic but didn’t have the stamina to maintain as fast pace. I was on the viewing deck, tearing up with pride reflecting on what it took to get to the point where she in the pool and resuming some “normal” activities. Then I hear the two moms next to me complaining that the “girl in the pink swim cap” didn’t belong in the “whales” lane because she was too slow.

My point is, no matter what the stakes, no matter how low, some parents feel compelled to judge other kids (who are trying really hard and may be facing some challenges) in the name of maintaining some standards that only they construct.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

News flash: no one cares about your opinions on how the sport of swimming could be improved. They are designed for the be as inclusive as possible for the swimmers, not the convenience of the parents. No one is forcing you to stay at the meet the entire time if it’s so painful for you. You can drop a kid off and come back later, or send them with a trusted family of a teammate. I remember going to big meets where there were 20 heats of 500 free. You think my parents sat through that? Nope. And don’t tell yourself that your kids absolutely need you to be there to watch every single race. They don’t. That’s something over involved parents tell themselves to justify their behavior. Swimming is for the participants, not the parents.

How dare someone express an opinion on the sport of swimming on a *checks notes* message board thread about swimming. If you’re going to attempt snark at least try to be clever. Inclusivity is not being threatened by not allowing kids to swim in individual events they are not ready for. But I know it’s super important that if back in the day people had to sit through interminable meets, people still need to experience that. Sorry that your coach back in the day sucked and made you sit through 20 heats of the 500 free before your first swim. My kid’s coach gives them an appropriate arrival time in that situation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

News flash: no one cares about your opinions on how the sport of swimming could be improved. They are designed for the be as inclusive as possible for the swimmers, not the convenience of the parents. No one is forcing you to stay at the meet the entire time if it’s so painful for you. You can drop a kid off and come back later, or send them with a trusted family of a teammate. I remember going to big meets where there were 20 heats of 500 free. You think my parents sat through that? Nope. And don’t tell yourself that your kids absolutely need you to be there to watch every single race. They don’t. That’s something over involved parents tell themselves to justify their behavior. Swimming is for the participants, not the parents.

the OP stated the comment she heard was about her daughter swimming in an elite pool, not about what events she was swimming.
but I think everyone can agree that young swimmer should be comfortable in a 50, then 100 before even considering a 200 for a stroke. Even if a 200 free is the only other 3rd or 4th event option it's okay not to max entries when your are 9. My son when he was 8 loved the breaststroke and always wanted to swim the 200 of it. He was good at it but still not an event that should be open for 8 year olds!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

Have you ever been to a track meet? Just wondering... If 4 hours is too long for you it would be interesting how you would feel at a meet that is 8+ hours long. Just to see your kid run 3-4 event so far between, in the hot sun. As the PP said, bring a book or just do not show up at all... either is fine to the parents.

Other sports are equally awful is not a badge of honor that swimming should aspire to. There are pretty easy ways to make the swim meet experience less arduous, and the fact that other sports also have arduous games/meets is not a reason for swimming to not make improvements.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

Have you ever been to a track meet? Just wondering... If 4 hours is too long for you it would be interesting how you would feel at a meet that is 8+ hours long. Just to see your kid run 3-4 event so far between, in the hot sun. As the PP said, bring a book or just do not show up at all... either is fine to the parents.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Or swimming could try to improve as a sport by not having meets that are 4 hours long. I love that there are clubs for all levels of swimmers so that any kid that loves the sport can compete regardless of whether they are fast. I really don’t mind when a kid takes a while to finish one of the 50s or a 100 free/IM, those are basic events for kids to do. But I do get frustrated by the coaches that throw a kid who struggles to complete a 50 fly into the 100 fly, etc. Kids should have to demonstrate an ability to complete an event, other than the basic ones, within a reasonable time before they get entered in that event in a meet.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Somebody has to come in last! If she was so slow that it delayed the meeting I could understand them being annoyed but they should still keep it to themselves. If your kid is happy there's no reason to stop.

I sometimes get annoyed when a swimmer is so much slower than everyone else and it slows down a long meet. Especially if it’s a meet with qualifying times and the kid clearly is not swimming the qualifying times. I’d never say anything out loud though. What were these people saying?

I'm guilty of this as well. I don't mind a heat of 50 back that takes over a minute, but a long fly event with someone who can barely do a 50 fly or a 3:45 200 free relay in a meet that is running behind can test my patience at times.

Bring a book. Are you honestly there to enjoy watching kids swim? Weird.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity

+1. I wonder if these PPs would be annoyed by elderly people who swim Masters? There are 90+ year olds swimming in meets. Everyone claps when they finish because everyone there understands what this is really about. Shame on these parents who think they can gatekeep a sport and be snobby about kids who swim slower. Swimming isn’t just for the faster kids. You signed your kid up for a meet and you know they are long. Deal with it or find another sport.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

+1. Kids have to try new events sometime, and our swim club encourages kids to try new/challenging events.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Somebody has to come in last! If she was so slow that it delayed the meeting I could understand them being annoyed but they should still keep it to themselves. If your kid is happy there's no reason to stop.

I sometimes get annoyed when a swimmer is so much slower than everyone else and it slows down a long meet. Especially if it’s a meet with qualifying times and the kid clearly is not swimming the qualifying times. I’d never say anything out loud though. What were these people saying?

I'm guilty of this as well. I don't mind a heat of 50 back that takes over a minute, but a long fly event with someone who can barely do a 50 fly or a 3:45 200 free relay in a meet that is running behind can test my patience at times.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

DP. I see this most often when a kid is legal because it’s freestyle, but it is clear that the kid isn’t ready for the distance of the event. This is a tangent, but swimming as a sport has a problem with the length of the meets. It’s hard to keep swimmers engaged through the course of a 3-4 hour meet, let alone the idea that you can keep fans engaged. More should be done to further tighten up the length of meets, and the easiest place to start is to not put kids in events that they are not ready for. Coaches should get unofficial times in practice and there should be a “cut” that a kid has to get before being entered in the event in a meet. A 5 minute 200 freestyle should not be happening at a meet.

+1 This would do so much to help these really long meets!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Somebody has to come in last! If she was so slow that it delayed the meeting I could understand them being annoyed but they should still keep it to themselves. If your kid is happy there's no reason to stop.

I sometimes get annoyed when a swimmer is so much slower than everyone else and it slows down a long meet. Especially if it’s a meet with qualifying times and the kid clearly is not swimming the qualifying times. I’d never say anything out loud though. What were these people saying?

Then stay home.. simple solution.

That would be bad for everyone because I’m always volunteering.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is annoying when a slow swimmer is in a long race that they clearly don’t belong in….but I blame the coaches not the parents when that happens

Who are you to judge where they don't belong? If they're legal and either meet a minimum time standard or no prior time is required, then they belong there if the coach thinks they're ready. Instead of being a horrible person in the stands, cheer on that kid who is clearly challenging themselves doing something hard. Celebrate the achievement and the effort.

The real experts celebrate love of sport and physical activity