COVIID-19 has dramatically changed the sports landscape as we know it, shutting down, canceling & postponing seasons from the professional leagues all the way down to the pee-wees of youth sports. What was unfathomable a couple months ago, is now our new reality. The worst part happens to be that there is complete uncertainty over when we might be able to start back up again.
What about the Sport of Swimming?
Summer league swimming is where it all begins. It is the best place to introduce new families to the wonderful sport of swimming. Most importantly, it’s a place where families can unwind, have fun, enjoy great company in the sun, and a place where young swimmers can run free.
With summer leagues and long course season up in the air, there are many teams that are holding on and hoping that they will be able to run some type of abbreviated season this summer. With that being said, WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT. It is time to get creative, come together, and think of some amazing new ways that we will be able to re-introduce and celebrate sports. There will be problems that we will all face together and there will be some amazing solutions that we will come up with collectively! If you are looking for some great resources on youth sports, visit https://www.aspenprojectplay.org/coronavirus-and-youth-sports
Things to consider and problems we will face at swim meets.
During these stressful times, remind yourselves that this is an experience that we are all going through and experiencing together. Things will be different and there will be new realities. As we discuss all of the issues at hand, we want to be ready and prepared for the future and new reality of swim meets.
Perception of the new reality
- When will these swim meets be safe?
- What additional steps can we take to emotionally feel safe?
Number of people & spectators on the pool deck
- Consider controlled environments and crowd control
- Swim meets without spectators
Transferring papers from volunteer to volunteer
- Timer Cards
- Heat Sheets
- DQ Slips
Transferring tangible items
- Stopwatches
- Plungers
- Dedicated timing devices
- Touchpads
- Computer equipment
Possible solutions for a safer swim meet environment.
This is the big question. How can we get together and create a safe environment for everyone when the swim seasons begin? Shorter seasons? Shorter event orders? This is the time to get together and come up with ways in which we can get excited for swimming to kick off when the time comes!
Virtual swim meets with Swimmingly
- Swim against other teams without doubling the crowds at your home pool location
- Simply run your meets with the same event orders and easily combine results for scoring
- Swim against any other Swimmingly team across the country
- Hold your swim meets without traveling
Pool deck crowd control
- Fewer volunteers needed on the pool deck using Swimmingly
- Only allow home team at each pool (virtual meet)
- Crowd control – Allow family members on deck during their swimmers’ races
Eliminate the transfer of paper and equipment from volunteers
- Use your own, personal devices to Start, Timer, Judge, and Score your swim meets with Swimmingly
Reshaping the swim meet experience
- Smaller swim meets, shorter event orders
- Dual and intersquad meets
- Ability to increase frequency of these meets with ease
- Today: More swim meets means more headache
- Tomorrow: More swim meets means more revenue for your team and more participation for your families
So, what does the future hold? With everyone’s help this could be an exciting start to a new era of swimming!
What if any team could swim anyone, anytime, anywhere?
Join the discussion this Saturday @ 2pm CST!
https://my.demio.com/ref/DZODwAFL7665urpl
ABOUT SWIMMINGLY:
IF YOUR TEAM IS:
- Summer League
- High School
- Year-Round Competitive Team
- Developmental Program
Swimmingly is perfect for you. Swimmingly was specifically designed to help you run faster, paperless swim meets with fewer volunteers. If you are worried about the transmitting of equipment and/or simply do not have access to touchpads or even want to eliminate the hassle of renting equipment, you can easily setup your meets in minutes and help to make them a little more fun for everyone involved!
If you have any creative ideas or just want to learn more about Swimmingly, visit us at Swimmingly.app and give us a call today!
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 866.377.7946
Proudly helping leagues and teams across 37 states and 6 countries!
Swimming news is courtesy of Swimmingly, a SwimSwam partner.