Competitions

As a competitive club we have a variety of competitions that swimmers may enter. Scottish Swimming has three levels of competition (L1, L2 and L3).

• Level 1 events are those run to the standards of national and international competition.

• Level 2 events are those run to full swimming rules, but at regional level. This means swimmers who inadvertently break a rule about how to swim a particular stroke will be disqualified from the race and their time will not be recorded.

• Level 3 events are those run to full swimming rules, but where swimmers are generally not disqualified if the break a rule. Instead the judge or referee at the event will let them know which rule they broke and help them to understand how to avoid repeating the mistake.

We do include a number of L2 & L3 meets in the schedule. L3’s are friendly meets designed to introduce the swimmer to the competitive environment. If it is not clear which level a particular meet is then you can find the licence number on the meet information document. It should look something like this: ED/L2/668/0313.

There is a competition calendar on TeamUnify and this is also where results will be posted onto your swimmer account. We hope to foster a spirit of healthy, but friendly, competition in our swimmers so that they are prepared to give their all to win, but also be gracious in defeat.

There is a fee per swim for all competitions except the club championships, Lothian Leagues and any relay or team swims (this means no fee for Coverdale entries). The fee is usually in the region of £4, payable when you agree to go to a meet. This will be refunded if the swimmer is not accepted, although the fee is usually still charged if the swimmer is deemed to be a reserve for a particular event.

Coverdale Trophy

We have a number of standing features in the calendar including the Coverdale Trophy. This is an extended gala between four local clubs run over the course of the season. Coverdale events are held in September, November, January and March each year. The clubs competing alongside us are Haddington, Tranent and Portobello ASC’s. The January meet is held at Musselburgh each season.

MASC Club Championships

are held in November each year. This is a fun event which all club swimmers are encouraged to attend. Children are seeded and swim by time in three separate age groups: 8 and under; 9-12 years and 13 and over. Medals are given out for each year group (7 year olds, 8 year olds, 9 year olds etc.) on the day for the three fastest swimmers of any age. There are also trophies for the most medals won in each age. These are awarded at the Club’s presentation night held in the New Year. This is also when the three handicap race trophies are awarded.

Entering a swimming competition

The competition secretary will provide information about upcoming competitions. They will probably email information to follow about the competition and how to enter. It should include things like when & where the meet is, what strokes and distances are being swum and which age groups can enter. The coaching team can be approached for advice on which events would be suitable for each swimmer. If you decide to enter your child then you should commit to the event via TeamUnify. The competition secretary will collate all the entries and send them off with payment to the competition organiser for submission. At this stage the club has sent a list of children it wishes to enter but places are not confirmed. The competition organiser will send back a draft programme to all the clubs who entered the competition. This is the first stage at which an entry can be confirmed. If a swimmer has a place or is a reserve then the club will be charged for their place. If a competition is oversubscribed then the swim will be refunded to the club by the organising club. This does happen, but is quite rare.