Regional Programme 22/23
A progressive and targeted Regional Programme is a key tactic in achieving Swim Ireland’s Performance objectives for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane. The Regional Programme will sit directly below the National Programme and will display alignment to it in terms of principles and content and will not operate as standalone programmes.
Swim Ireland Performance will operate a three tiered Regional Programme encompassing a ‘Skills Academy’ cohort for Age Group athletes, a ‘Development Programme’ cohort for Youth athletes and a ‘Pathway Programme’ for senior athletes. An athlete can potentially be a member of the Skills Academy for two years before progressing to the Development Programme which provides support to athletes as they aim to achieve National Programme selection within a one to four year period. The Pathway Programme supports those athletes who may miss out on National Programme selection or who develop later in the sport. The Programme aims to support athletes as they endeavour to reach their full potential at senior national and/or international level. Athletes do not have to have been members of the one particular cohort in a previous season before achieving selection to another cohort.
Regional Skills Academy
Age Groups: Male and Female athletes born 2009/2010
Maximum Athlete Quota: Up to 36 athletes per region
Athlete Selection: National Performance Pathway Manager & Regional Pathway Development
Selection Criteria
- Results from the Regional LC Championships (May 2022), Irish National Division 2 Competition (July 2022) and Irish Summer National Championships (July 2022) will be converted to long course and athletes ranked as follows will be selected:
- Athletes ranked Top 6 in the 200m IM per age group in each Region
- Athletes ranked Top 3 per age group in each Region in a minimum of two of the following eligible events:
i. Born 2010 – 50m Freestyle, 100m and 200m all four strokes
ii. Born 2009 – 50m Freestyle, 100m and 200m all four strokes, 400m Freestyle, 400m Individual Medley
- In the case where more than 36 athletes within a Region achieve the above criteria, selection will be based on the National Rankings in the events from which the athlete has been considered
Find out more about the selection criteria and the programme here
Regional Development Programme Stage 1
Age Groups: Male and Female athletes born 2007/2008
Maximum Athlete Quota: Up to 20 athletes per Region
Athlete Selection: National Performance Pathway Manager & Regional Pathway Development Coach/s
Selection Criteria:
1. Male athletes born 2008 must achieve at least two of the published individual event Consideration Standards at one of the Identification Meets (full details in Regional Development plan)
2. Male athletes born 2007 and Female athletes born 2007/2008 must achieve at least one of the published individual event Consideration Standards (see pages 8 and 9) at one of the Identification Meets outlined below
3. In the case where more than 20 athletes within a Region achieve the criteria outlined in Selection Criteria 1, athletes will be ranked as a percentage outside of the National Programme Consideration Standard in the event which gives them the lowest percentage outside the Standard to meet the maximum quota of 20athletes. This will be a ranking across both genders, all ages and all Olympic events
4. In the case where less than 20 athletes within a Region achieve the criteria outlined in Selection Criteria 1, additional athletes from the Region will be added at the discretion of the selectors, ranked as a percentage outside of the Consideration Standard in the event which gives them the lowest percentage outside of the Standard to meet a minimum quota of 12 athletes and a maximum quota of 20 athletes. This will be a ranking across both genders, all ages and all Olympic events.
Find out more about the selection criteria and the programme here
Regional Development Programme Stage 2
Age Groups: Male and Female athletes born 2005/2006
Maximum Athlete Quota: Up to 16 per Region
Athlete Selection: National Performance Pathway Manager & Regional Pathway Development Coach/s
Selection Criteria:
1. Athletes must achieve at least one of the published individual event Consideration Standards at one of the Identification Meets. (full details in Regional Development plan)
2. In the case where more than 16 athletes within a Region achieve the criteria outlined in Selection Criteria 1, athletes will be ranked as a percentage outside of the National Programme Consideration Standard in the event which gives them the lowest percentage outside the Standard to meet the maximum quota of 16 athletes. This will be a ranking across both genders, all ages and all Olympic events
3. In the case where less than 16 athletes within a Region achieve the criteria outlined in Selection Criteria 1, additional athletes from the Region will normally be added at the discretion of the selectors, ranked as a percentage outside of the Consideration Standard in the event which gives them the lowest percentage outside of the Standard to meet a minimum quota of 8 athletes and a maximum quota of 16 athletes. This will be a ranking across both genders, all ages and all Olympic events.
Find out more about the selection criteria and the programme here
Regional Pathway Programme
Age Groups: Male athletes born 2002-2004 and Female athletes born 2003/2004
Maximum Athlete Quota: 8 athletes (Nationally)
Athlete Selection: National Performance Pathway Manager & Regional Pathway Development Coach/s
Selection Criteria:
1. Athletes must achieve at least one of the published individual event Consideration Standards at one of the Identification Meets . (full details in Regional Development plan)
2. When making selections, the following criteria will be considered:
a. Performance profile between 2019 and 2022
b. Current level of support versus the required level of support to progress to the National Programme
3. In the case where more than 8 athletes within a Region achieve the criteria outlined in Selection Criteria 2, athletes will be ranked as a percentage outside of the National Programme Consideration Standard in the event which gives them the lowest percentage outside the Standard to meet the maximum quota of 8 athletes. This will be a ranking across both genders, all ages and all Olympic events.
Find out more about the selection criteria and the programme here
