Working on education pieces for new swim families and just general information for current families. It is really important to understand what is expected for meets and how much of your time will be taken for any particulate swim meet weekend.
1. Timed Finals Meet (The Standard Format)
The Timed Finals format is straightforward and is used for almost all local, invitational, and "B/BB" level meets.
| Feature | Explanation |
| How it Works | Every swimmer swims each of their entered events only once. |
| The Result | The swimmer's place in the event is determined by their time, regardless of who they swam against in their specific heat (race). All times from all heats in that event are merged, and the fastest time wins the event. |
| Schedule | The meet is typically a single session per day (e.g., a Saturday morning meet). Your swimmer arrives, warms up, swims their events, and then is done for the day. |
| Swimmer Focus | Focus is on getting a better at racing. |
| Common at | Dual meets, club invitationals, Novice/Rookie meets, and most events for swimmers aged 12 & Under. |
The Swimmer's Experience:
Your swimmer will be placed in a heat with other swimmers of a similar speed (based on their entry time). If there are 10 heats of the 50 Freestyle, the winner of Heat 1 is simply the fastest swimmer in that particular race, but their overall place in the event is determined only after the 10th and final heat is swum. They only need to focus on one great swim.
2. Prelims/Finals Meet (The Championship Format)
The Prelims/Finals (or "P/F") format is designed for higher-level competitions where the goal is to determine a single, definitive winner in a head-to-head race. It requires a significant commitment, as it is a two-session day for qualifiers. Swimmers who qualify for for Finals are expected to compete in finals. Even if you are not seeded in a position to make it back you should always plan on your swimmer making it back to finals.
| Feature | Preliminary Session (Morning) | Final Session (Evening) |
| How it Works | All entered swimmers race their event to get the fastest time possible. | The top 8, 16, or 24 fastest swimmers from the morning return to race again. |
| The Result | The morning times are used only to qualify for the final session. | The places (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.) and medals/points are determined only by the times swum in this session. |
| Schedule | The day is split: Morning Session (Prelims) and Evening Session (Finals). | Qualifiers often have a long break between the two sessions. |
| Swimmer Focus | Morning: Swim fast enough to make the cut for finals. "Qualify!" | Evening: Swim even faster to place and win a medal. "Race!" |
| Common at | State/LSC Championships, Sectionals, Junior Nationals, and meets for older age groups (13 & Over). |
The Swimmer's Experience:
Morning Prelims: Swimmers race hard, trying to finish in the top positions (e.g., top 8 or top 16).
Making Finals:
If they finish in the top 8, they usually make the "A Final" (or Championship Final).
If they finish 9th through 16th, they may make the "B Final" (or Consolation Final).
Evening Finals: They return to the pool.
Swimmers in the A Final compete for 1st through 8th place.
Swimmers in the B Final compete for 9th through 16th place.
Why is this format used? It rewards swimmers who can perform well under pressure and race a fast time twice in one day. The Final race in the evening is the true head-to-head competition for the title.
Summary for New Swim Families
| Format | Swimmer Races | Experience |
| Timed Finals | Once per event. | Single, shorter session. Good for setting PBs. |
| Prelims/Finals | Twice per event (if they qualify). | Full-day commitment. High pressure, high reward championship racing. |
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