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Anchor
|
the last swimmer in a
relay.
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|
|
the lap of a freestyle distance race
when the swimmer has 2 lengths to go. An official rings a bell over
the lane of the lead swimmer to signal them that they are nearing
the end of the race.
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Block
|
the swimmer dives off the starting
“block” at the beginning of a
race.
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Cap
|
a
swim cap made of latex, lycra or silicone worn on a swimmers head
to protect the hair from the effects of chlorine in the water. It
also helps to cut down water resistance from the swimmer’s
hair.
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Circle
In
|
a
list of swimmers entered in each event at USA meets is posted near
the pool, and swimmers should indicate their intention to swim
events by circling the event number next to their name. This is a
check in for meet officials in order for the swimmer to be seeded
in a race.
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Clerk of
Course
|
person(s) responsible for keeping
track of swimmer circle-ins, scratches and on-deck entries at a
meet.
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DQ
|
a
slang term for disqualified. Swimmers are disqualified for illegal
turns or stroke techniques and for improper starts and finishes.
The swimmer will not receive a time for that race if
DQ’d
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Deck
Entered Meet
|
where all entries are accepted on the first
or later day of that meet and subsequently seeded into
events.
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Deck
Seeded Meet
|
where all entries are due prior to
first day of meet and swimmers must declare availability to swim
prior to scratch deadlines.
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Drag
suit
|
a
second suit that is loose fitting worn by competitive swimmers
during workouts to add resistance to the flow of water around the
swimmer as they swim.
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Dry
land
|
a
workout done out of the pool. Stretching, core strength exercises,
running, stretch cords and weights are all
implemented.
|
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Event
|
a
swimming race that is designated by the stroke and the distance
being swum.
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False
Start
|
occurs when the swimmer leaves the
leaves the starting block too soon or is moving on the block before
the starter officially starts the
race.
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Finish
|
the end of a
race.
|
|
Flip
Turn
|
a
type of turn used in freestyle and backstroke. As the swimmer is
approaching the wall, they flip forward in a continuous motion,
pushing off the wall with their feet to start the next
lap.
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Goggles
|
eye wear worn in the pool to protect
the swimmers eyes form the effects of chlorine in the
water.
|
|
Heat
|
a
group of swimmers racing at the same time. Each event is
divided into heats. The swimmers in each heat are seeded with
comparable times and placed in lanes with the fastest swimmer in
the center lane and the slowest swimmers in the outside
lanes.
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|
Heat
Sheets
|
a
program which lists swimmers in each event in the order number in
which each event is swum.
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I.M.
|
abbreviation for individual medley.
An event where the swimmer swims equal distances of all four
competitive strokes in the following order: butterfly, backstroke,
breaststroke and freestyle.
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Interval
|
a
goal time set by the coach for a specific stroke /distance.
Interval training is done at practice.
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|
Junior
National Championships
|
a
championship meets sponsored by the National Club Swimming
Association ( NCSA).
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|
Kick
Board
|
a
flat form float held in the swimmer’s arms while practicing
kicking drills.
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|
Lane
Assignments
|
races are seeded after a swimmer has
circled-in. Lane and heat assignments will be posted near the
starting blocks before each race. Swimmers are responsible for
finding their own heat and lane
assignments.
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Lane
Ropes
|
the dividers used to distinguish
individual lanes. The ropes are made of rotating discs which
dissipate the waves during races.
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|
Lap
Counter
|
large numbered cards used by the
counter, not the swimmer, during freestyle events 500 yards or
longer. Counting is done from the end opposite the starting end.
The numbers on the cards are all odd numbers with the final lap
number on the card being bright red.
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|
Long
Course
|
the swim season that runs from April
to August in which meets are held in 50 meter
pools.
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LSC
|
USA swimming divides the country
into Local Swimming Committees. Katy is part of the Gulf
LSC.
|
|
Meet
Program
|
entry sheets showing all swimmers
entered into each individual events.
|
|
National
Championships
|
a
meet sponsored by USA Swimming and is the highest level of swimming
competition in the US. The meets are held twice a year, one for
short course and one for long course.
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|
Non
Conforming Time
|
a
shortcourse time submitted to qualify for a long course meet or
vice versa.
|
|
Official
|
meet judges who are trained and
certified by USA Swimming. These include starters, referees, and
stroke turn officials.
|
|
On-Deck
Entry
|
a
swimmer may enter events on the day of the meet by signing up with
the Clerk of Course at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the
day’s events.
|
|
Pace
Clocks
|
electronic clocks with highly
visible number and second hands that are positioned at the ends or
sides of a swimming pool so the swimmers can read their times
during practice or warm-ups.
|
|
Personal
Best
|
a
swimmer’s best time to date
|
|
Pre-seeded Meet
|
a
meet in which heat and lane assignments are determined before the
meet and listed in the heat sheet. There is generally no circle-in
at a pre-seeded meet.
|
|
Positive
Check-In
|
procedure required before a swimmer
swims an event in a deck seeded or pre-seeded
meet.
|
|
Prelims-Finals
|
a
type of meet with two sessions. Preliminary heats are usually
held in the morning session. The fastest 6 or 8 swimmers
(Championship Heat) and the next fastest 6 or 8 swimmers
(Consolation Heat) return in the evening to compete in the
finals.
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|
Pull
buoy
|
a
foam float held between a swimmer’s legs while practicing arm
drills.
|
|
Pullout
|
in
breaststroke, the initial arm pull and kick which brings the
swimmer to the surface immediately after the start or
turn.
|
|
Referee
|
the meet official who overseas
the operation of a meet. The referee has the final authority on any
rule interpretation or conflict that may arise during the course of
a meet.
|
|
Relays
|
races where four swimmer teams
compete. In a freestyle relay, each swimmer swims freestyle. In a
medley relay, each swimmer swims a different stroke in the
following order: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and
freestyle.
|
|
Scratch
|
to
remove a swimmer from an event prior to the start of the
race.
|
|
Senior
|
a
swimmer aged 15 and older.
|
|
Set
|
in
practice, a combination of swimming and/stroke/kick drills that is
typically done in a repetitive fashion and on a certain time
interval.
|
|
Shave
|
just prior to a major competition a
swimmer will shave their entire body. Shaving provides less
resistance between water and skin.
|
|
Short
Course
|
the swim season form September to
March. All meets are held in 25 yard
pools.
|
|
Split
|
a
swimmers intermediate time in a race. A coach will determine
whether a swimmer is on an appropriate pace. A negative split
occurs when a swimmer swims the second half of the race faster than
the first.
|
|
Start
|
is
the beginning of the race. Swimmers will stand behind the blocks
until instructed to step up on the blocks or enter the water if
swimming backstroke. The referee will blow a whistle as a signal
that the race is about to begin. The starter will announce the
event number and name of the race and will ask swimmers to
“take your mark.” Swimmers than move into
starting position and hold that position until the starter sounds
the signal that starts the race.
|
|
Starter
|
the meet official who starts
each race.
|
|
Stretch
Cord
|
a
long, elastic or rubber cord used in dry land
workouts.
|
|
Swim-off
|
in
a prelim/final type of competition, a race after the scheduled
event to break a tie.
|
|
TAGS
|
Texas Age Group Swimming
Championships. This meet is held twice a year at the end of
short course and long course seasons. Swimmers must meet minimum
qualifying times that place them in the top 24 swimmers in the
state in each event.
|
|
Taper
|
the resting process in training for
competitive swimming competition. During the middle of the
season, an elite swimmer will work out 8 to 10 miles each day. As a
major competition draws near, the swimmer will “taper”
off the distance swum each day. This enables the swimmer to compete
at their peak capability.
|
|
Timed
Finals
|
competition in which only heats are
swum and final places are determined by those
times.
|
|
Timing
|
at
USA Swimming meets, the touchpad provides the official time.
Back-up times are provided by
stopwatches.
|
|
Top16
|
a
list of times compiled by the LSC or USA-S that recognizes the top
16 swimmers in each age group (boys and girls) by each event and
distance. The number 16 was arbitrarily chosen because it would
normally fill the finals and consoles heats at a swim
meet.
|
|
Three
Event Rule
|
a
swimmer who qualifies in 3 or more events for a meet can swim any
event offered at that meet in that age
group.
|
|
Touch
|
the finish of the
race.
|
|
Touchpad
|
the area at the end of each lane of
the pool where a swimmer’s time is registered by their touch
and sent electronically to the timing system and then to the
scoreboard.
|
|
Turnover
|
times a swimmer’s arms turn
over or cycle in a given distance or time during a
race.
|
|
Unattached
|
an
athlete member who competes, but does not represent a club or
team.
|
|
Warm-down
|
laps swum by a swimmer after the
race to get their muscles loose and ready to
race.
|
|
Warm-up
|
laps swum by a swimmer before the
race to get muscles loose and ready to
race.
|
|
Up/Down
Rule
|
for example, a swimmer who enters
and A+ up meet with an A time in the 100 yard freestyle, can swim
the next shortest distance event and the next longest distance
event of the same stroke.
|
|
Zones
|
a regional swim meet attended by the top
swimmers from each LSC. TheGulf LSC participates in the Southern
Zone meet which includes teams from the southeastern
US.
|
