Last updated on March 22nd, 2023 at 03:38 pm
In my mind, every swim club/team is a meet-hosting organization—even those who haven’t ever run a meet. Why? Because meets are an essential part of competitive swimming. If I could wave a magic wand and give every coach, and other swim team leader this vision, I would. But I can’t, so I blog. Even if a swim team doesn’t (yet) have a meet-hosting capacity, it can still develop a meet-hosting culture. It will most likely start with a key person (like a coach or proactive parent) gaining a meet-hosting mentality. (More on that in, A Meet Hosting Culture Can Start With One Person) A team with a meet-hosting culture develops the resources (human and otherwise) needed to run swim meets. As with any good thing, there are usually obstacles to overcome. Here are some thoughts on tackling challenges to meet hosting.
Contents for Overcome Obstacles and Run Swim Meets
Advice to non-meet hosting swim teams
How would your swimmers benefit from a locally hosted meet? What about your team? How would your swimmer’s parents benefit? Recognizing benefits helps strengthen resolve. Consider what it would take for your team to host a meet. (Not sure where to start? Try searching the “Quick Start” category.)
Identify Potential Obstacles and Options
What potential obstacles do you see? Try searching this webpage to find ideas that address the challenges you see. What ideas come to mind that might help overcome the obstacles? Perhaps something read may spark other thoughts that lead to success. What local resources do you have that could help meet the needs?
Develop a Meet Hosting Capacity
Even if a meet hosting capacity takes years to develop, that time will pass anyway. Why not invest that time and some effort towards developing the capacity to run swim meets? “Grow” your own officials, fund-raise for equipment, partner with another team, or rent a facility, if needed. Your organization can grow stronger by working together to create and carry out a plan to move towards swim meet hosting.
Advice to the swim team troubled by running meets
Ran a swim meet and hated it? Perhaps you didn’t hate it but are not looking forward to the next one. Running swim meets takes a lot of work and coordination. There are a lot of “moving parts” including:
Processes
Swim meet processes include
- Preparing the meet announcement
- Getting officials
- Training volunteers, and more!
Place
This includes facility-related issues. What were the main challenges with previously hosted meets? It might help to write them down or discuss them with other team leaders. Carefully identifying problems is a crucial step to effectively address them. Are there any ideas on this website that focus on your concern(s)? What about discussing the problems, and possible solutions at the next board or coaches meeting? Consider assembling a meet committee to discuss the subject. Yes, doing so will take time and effort. But consider this: ideas, skills, capacity, and working relationships develop through this process. What organization wouldn’t benefit from this?
People
People host and run swim meets. Did some of the past challenges involve people? Often, it’s hard to find enough willing and able people to help. The Get Help section of the website contains a variety of ideas on ways to get more help running swim meets.
Request for teams that run swim meets well
Keep up the great work and consider sharing what you’ve learned and developed on HostGreatMeets.com. Many competitive swimming volunteers are parents of athletes. As kids grow or interests change, many parents move on too. Coaches change jobs and retire. Regular turnover of meet hosting leadership doesn’t have to take us by surprise. Anticipate change and prepare for it. This website can prevent “reinventing the wheel” every time a new volunteer or coach steps up by providing a repository for ideas and resources to run swim meets. Visit the “Add To The Pool” section to find out how you can share your successful ideas, resources, and lessons learned with others on HostGreatMeets.com.
Title Image Credit: Image by Eluj from Pixabay
Preparing for a swim meet? Check out The Ultimate Swim Meet To-Do List. Then, get a bird’s eye view of Who does What at Swim Meets. Both include easy-to-follow links to related information. Doing a smaller, simpler meet? Host a High School or Developmental Swim Meet will help.
Need more help? See 20+ Ways to Get Swim Meet Timers and Officials: 20+ Ways to Get them for Swim Meets.
Also, discover a few things you can do to Increase Safety at Swim Meets. Find ideas to implement before your meet as well as last-minute quick and easy tips!