Coaches Corner

Kickoff the Season        Hydratation & Our Swimmers         Nutrition & Building a Healthy Swimmer        

Rest & Recovery for Athletes     10 Characteristics of a Champion     Dyrland for Swimmers

Championship Meet Frequently Asked Questions

When you join Forest Grove Swim Club you become a member of USA Swimming and Oregon Swimming (Local Swim Committee -- LSC).

USA Swimming is the National Governing Body for the sport of swimming in the United States.

• The National Governing Body (NGB) of United States Swimming is an extension of the United States Olympic Committee. The NGB is responsible for nearly all aspects of USA Swimming and swimming in the United States in general. Its most important responsibility is to set the rules for the sport in the United States.
• USA Swimming promotes the culture of swimming by creating safe and healthy opportunities for all athletes, coaches and volunteers. 
• USA Swimming organizes and operates the sport within the country, in accordance with the Amateur Sports Act. The national headquarters is located at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
• The Zone is a relatively minor part of the organization. Its primary task is to operate Zone and Sectional meets and facilitate conversation between Local Swimming Committees (LSCs) in the same national region
• The Local Swimming Committee (LSC) is the local level of USA Swimming. Each LSC is a separate entity, with each being an individual member of USA Swimming, although all act on behalf of USA Swimming on the local level. The LSC is the organization responsible for nearly all aspects of the operations of amateur swimming.
• Meet types: There are many types of meets, including open meets, senior meets, championship meets, and pentathlons. 
• Meet levels: Meets are organized by ability level, from beginner to elite senior. 
• Meet seasons: The swim year is divided into two seasons: Short Course Yards -SCY (September–March) and Long Course Meters - LCM (April–August). 
• Meet events: Swimmers compete in events like butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle over distances ranging from 50 yards to 1,650. 
• Meet benefits: Meets allow swimmers to showcase their skills and coaches to evaluate their swimmers' performance. 

What are Time Standards?

Time standards are used as a tool to motivate swimmers.  Swimmers can use these times to set goals for a season.

• All swimmers are ranked according to their best achieved time in each event. 
• A swimmer must swim an event at a sanctioned meet for the time to be official.
• A swim must be performed legally to be accepted. (No disqualified times will be accepted.)
• All swimmers’ legal times from each meet are then loaded up to the USA Swimming national database.
• It is very normal for your swimmer to have different time standards for different strokes. They may even have different standards for the same stroke but different distances.
• As your swimmer matures their best stroke and distances may change. A swimmer should not specialize until they have completed physical maturation. Swimming all the strokes and all the distances will only improve your swimmers physical and mental development throughout their career.
• Bottom line - Time standards are great for goal setting and should be used to motivate your swimmer, but while improvement is desired it should not be required. Be patient and let your athlete improve at their own pace. Never compare your swimmer’s success to another swimmer. All swimmers are individuals with unique abilities and each will develop at their own rate

Oregon Swimming Time Standards

Oregon swimming has set time standards for each gender and age group.

• 10 & Under State Championships will use the 2023-2024 B time standard 
• 11 -14 State Championships will use the 2023-2024 B+ time standard 
• 15 & over will use the 14-yr old 2023-2024 A time standard for Short Course Champs

Time Standards Northwest Regional - USA Swimming, Inc. has divided the United States into various swimming sections. All of the Western states except for California are in our section. Typically, there is a Northwest Regional Age Group meet at the end of Short Course Yards season.

Western Age Group Zone Time Standards - USA Swimming also divides the United States into Zones (groupings of Sections) for the purpose of conducting Zone Championship meets. The Age Group meet occurs only at the end of Long Course season. OSI selects a team to represent Team Oregon at the Age Group Zones meet. To be eligible, swimmers must obtain qualifying times during the specified period and submit an application and coach recommendation to the Zones coaching staff committee. The committee then selects the team that will represent OSI at the Western Zone Age Group Championship. The Western Zone Senior Time Standards – Sr. Zones is held at the end of both Short and Long Course seasons.  Athletes competing at the Senior meet must obtain qualifying times to participate but no application is necessary.

Northwest Sectionals – Sectionals is held in both Short & Long Course seasons and is very similar to the Sr. Zone Champ Meet

Futures - USA Swimming conducts several Futures meets around the country at the end of each Long Course season. The Futures Championships are designed as an intermediate step between Sectional Championships and Junior National or National Championships and are open to swimmers of all ages.

Winter Nationals Time Standards - These times qualify the swimmer for the Junior \ National meets. Senior swimmers strive to achieve these qualifying times as they are the first national milestone for swimmers looking toward competing at Olympic and International events