Ann Arbor Named America’s Top Swim City For Second Consecutive Year

Ann Arbor, MI has officially been named the best swim city in American for second year in a row by USA Swimming.

Each city’s ranking is based on an aggregate score in categories including percentage of active swimmers and swim clubs, number of accessible pools and volume of top-level swimmers from the area. Cities in the top 50 had a population of 250,000 or higher.

Ann Arbor was chosen because of the high number of facilities that allow the residents of the city to swim. On top of that, the area has produced a large number of Olympians, and is centered around the University of Michigan.

“People love swimming in Ann Arbor and the community rallies around the sport. This honor is also a testament to the University of Michigan swim program and how it has inspired the entire city of Ann Arbor to get in the water,” said Tyler Clary. “The combination of Club Wolverine, the University, city residents and Club Wolverine Swim Camp as one of the most successful swim camps in the country, is evidence of why the Ann Arbor swim community is so great.”

Other notable facts about the cities ranked 2-10 from USA Swimming include:

• San Jose-Santa Clara: A major contender for the top swim city, San Jose-Santa Clara boasts the largest multicultural make-up of swimmers of any region in the country. The Santa Clara Swim Club has produced 51 Olympic gold medals, 17 silver, and 12 bronze during its proud history. Swimming legends Mark Spitz and Donna de Varona grew up in the area.
• San Francisco-Oakland: Home to 10 percent of the country’s U.S. Masters Swimmers, more than any other city across the country, including Olympic Gold Medalists Natalie Coughlin and Nathan Adrian, among many others.
• Durham: One in 10 Durham residents report they swim for fitness, making swimming one of the most popular fitness activities in the community.
• Austin: The city has the eighth highest number of top USA Swimming athletes in the country, despite ranking 40th in population size. A number of Olympic champions, including Brendan Hansen, call Austin home. Nitro Swimming is the seven-time Texas Age Group Champion.
• Madison: With 24 pools in the area, Madison has double the amount of swimming facilities among other cities of its size.
• Raleigh-Cary: A large number of U.S. Masters swimmers, USA Swimming members, fitness swimmers and top USA Swimmers live in the area. Raleigh is also home to N.C. State, where Olympic Gold Medalist Cullen Jones attended college.
• Fort Collins: One of four Colorado cities represented in the top 16 Swim Cities this year, ranking above Boulder, Colorado Springs and Denver. The city has a large number of USA Swimming members, clubs and top-performing swimmers relative to its population.
• Washington, D.C.: Washington, D.C. is a strong addition to the top 10 with 15,000 USA Swimming members, the fourth highest number in the country. There are 122 swim facilities inside the Beltway, sixth-best, and one of the most robust summer league programs nationwide. Nation’s Capital Swim Club topped the USA Swimming Club Excellence program in 2015.
• Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk: The area hosts 24 swim clubs, the most of any area with a population below 1 million people.