SWIM OFFICIALS
It takes approximately 60 – 80 volunteer parent officials to put on a swim meet. Therefore, the club requires that all SUNFISH parents assist at our competitive meets. Volunteer shifts are two hours each and parents are needed to proactively sign‐up at meets to help with the following duties. At swim meets, parents can fill many jobs. Parents usually work one or two shifts each day of the meet, a shift lasting two to three hours. Some jobs require just a brief orientation; others need some type of training. Experience can be gained by attending the various instruction clinics that will be offered throughout the season.
The first clinic to attend is the “level one”, which is where you will learn how to use a stopwatch. The “level two” is the “stroke & turn” clinic, and the “level three” is the “starter & referee” clinic; Watch for dates for when these clinics will be offered. Working alongside experienced volunteers is an invaluable method of gaining skill and confidence in your own abilities. The Sunfish will hold a level one clinic early in the season to explain to new parents how a meet runs and outline the very basic job requirements.
The following positions require minimal / no experience. First time volunteers will be shown everything they need to know by more experienced club members.
• Lane Timers – sits at end of one swim lane and “times” the swimmers in their lane using a stop watch (provided by the club).
(This is the best seat in the house during a swim meet! You can see your child from the blocks!)
The following positions are critical for what our club needs during our SUNFISH swim meets (Development and AB Meet)
• Chief Lane Timer – coordinates all the lane timing
• Lane Recorder – records the times from the lane timers
• Food for Officials ‐ helps prepare and distribute food and drink.
• Concession ‐ helps cook food and takes orders.
• Data Entry ‐ enters the verified times into the computer in a timely fashion so that results can be posted for all to see.
• Marshalling ‐ helps the swimmers get into the correct heat and lane and to the blocks.
• Announcer ‐ announces the event numbers, etc.
The following positions are ones requiring training at one of our clinics, or extensive training on the job:
• Referee – oversees all officials and runs the meet
• Starter – starts each event
• Stroke and Turn Judges – ensures swimmers swim to established criteria
• Marshal
• Clerk of the Course – Organizes the scratches, calls the events.
• Electronic Timing System Recorder – Operates the timing system, prints out the electronic time for each race/heat.
Parents interested in stroke and turn judging can attend clinics (workshops) offered during the swim season. Please talk to the Director of Officials or Head Coach. Clinics will be advertised ‐ watch for announcements on the website. Just a reminder that our swim meets cannot go ahead unless there are enough people to volunteer to fill up each of these positions. At each swim meet look for the sing‐up sheet for positions needed to be filled by the Sunfish swim club members.
Questions? Ask!
It takes approximately 60 – 80 volunteer parent officials to put on a swim meet. Therefore, the club requires that all SUNFISH parents assist at our competitive meets. Volunteer shifts are two hours each and parents are needed to proactively sign‐up at meets to help with the following duties. At swim meets, parents can fill many jobs. Parents usually work one or two shifts each day of the meet, a shift lasting two to three hours. Some jobs require just a brief orientation; others need some type of training. Experience can be gained by attending the various instruction clinics that will be offered throughout the season.
The first clinic to attend is the “level one”, which is where you will learn how to use a stopwatch. The “level two” is the “stroke & turn” clinic, and the “level three” is the “starter & referee” clinic; Watch for dates for when these clinics will be offered. Working alongside experienced volunteers is an invaluable method of gaining skill and confidence in your own abilities. The Sunfish will hold a level one clinic early in the season to explain to new parents how a meet runs and outline the very basic job requirements.
The following positions require minimal / no experience. First time volunteers will be shown everything they need to know by more experienced club members.
• Lane Timers – sits at end of one swim lane and “times” the swimmers in their lane using a stop watch (provided by the club).
(This is the best seat in the house during a swim meet! You can see your child from the blocks!)
The following positions are critical for what our club needs during our SUNFISH swim meets (Development and AB Meet)
• Chief Lane Timer – coordinates all the lane timing
• Lane Recorder – records the times from the lane timers
• Food for Officials ‐ helps prepare and distribute food and drink.
• Concession ‐ helps cook food and takes orders.
• Data Entry ‐ enters the verified times into the computer in a timely fashion so that results can be posted for all to see.
• Marshalling ‐ helps the swimmers get into the correct heat and lane and to the blocks.
• Announcer ‐ announces the event numbers, etc.
The following positions are ones requiring training at one of our clinics, or extensive training on the job:
• Referee – oversees all officials and runs the meet
• Starter – starts each event
• Stroke and Turn Judges – ensures swimmers swim to established criteria
• Marshal
• Clerk of the Course – Organizes the scratches, calls the events.
• Electronic Timing System Recorder – Operates the timing system, prints out the electronic time for each race/heat.
Parents interested in stroke and turn judging can attend clinics (workshops) offered during the swim season. Please talk to the Director of Officials or Head Coach. Clinics will be advertised ‐ watch for announcements on the website. Just a reminder that our swim meets cannot go ahead unless there are enough people to volunteer to fill up each of these positions. At each swim meet look for the sing‐up sheet for positions needed to be filled by the Sunfish swim club members.
Questions? Ask!