Introduction
The Club only enters Galas fully licensed by SASA (Scottish Amateur Swimming Association) and these are the only events your swimmers can attend. Gala information and entry criteria such as consideration times and eligibility will generally be attached to the calendar but the Team Unify system should also prevent you from inadvertedly declaring if your swimmer does not meet the criteria. All Events will appear in the Events & Competition Calendar.
Every meet attended will also require Swim Technical Officials (STOs) to sign-up to ensure the event is accredited. The expectation is that all parents / guardians become a Time Keeper after 9-12 months and move on to Level 1 judge into year 2 following the STO Pathway.
Types of Meets
MINI MEETS
These are galas aimed at our youngest and more inexperienced swimmers usually age 11 and under. Distances swum tend to be 50m events. They are accredited events.
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS
PCSC Annual Club Champs are held at Perth pool over a full weekend during September or November usually. All members are encouraged to take part and it’s a fantastic event to showcase the talent of our swimmers and teamwork of our volunteers in a more relax and fun environment. It is the perfect platform for our new and youngest swimmers to gain competition experience.
GRADED MEETS
These are also accredited meets and swimmers entering must have times slower than the times stated in the entry information. Events tend to be a mixture of 50m and 100m distance. ‘Swim too Fast / Speeding tickets’ are issued to swimmers who finish events faster than the time stated in the entry information; can sound crazy but it’s a good thing …..
DISTRICT MEETS
Scottish Swimming is split into districts and PCSC is part of the Midland District which covers Perth & Kinross, Dundee and Angus. Again fully accredited and include a range of strokes and distances both Short Course and Long Course.
NATIONAL MEETS
These take place throughout Scotland and will have a qualifying standard to achieve.
TIME TRIALS
These are short, sharp events that take place during a training session often focussing on only one or two events, strokes and distances.
Race Selection
Which events should I enter?
If you are unsure which races your child should swim, the first point of contact should be your lane coach. However before speaking to your coach, you should read the conditions and qualifying times in the gala documentation as it will tell you which races your child is able to enter. This information is linked to the relevant gala and is posted in the Events section of the website.
What is a qualifying time and where do I find them?
If your child has swum a race and had the time registered with Scottish Swimming you can compare that time to the qualifying time in the gala documentation. If it is faster that the QT your child can enter the race. Often galas specify an upper and lower QT so if your child is too fast, they cannot enter the race, or will not be able to get a medal if they win their category and most like receive a Swim too Fast award.
Entry Times
Where do I find an entry time?
Individual times are loaded into Team Unify in your swimmer’s membership tab and for gala entry will often populate into each specific event. To look at your Scottish Swimming registered time you can also click on swimmingresults.org
How do I convert a 25m time (short course) to a 50m (long course) time and vice versa?
The qualifying times will always say whether they are short or long course and sometimes they reference both. If they specify a long course time and you only have a short course time you can convert the time by clicking on pullbuoy.co.uk
Please note the conversion tab in Team Unify should not yet be used until ASA conversion tables are uploaded.
Submitting an Entry
How do I submit my entry?
This is all through the TeamUnify system. A handy help guide can be found here for parents. See also our separate tab Meet Entry Process.
You should receive an email from the Entries Secretary with instructions and be able to view gala information on the website and On Deck App with information personal to the events you can enter.
What happens if I miss the deadline?
Unfortunately, unless the organiser extends the entry date you cannot be considered for entry.
After submitting the entry
Are entries accepted?
Some galas get full very quickly and others accept only a few entries from each swimmer particularly at events out with our Midland district. This can be frustrating if you are left with only one or two races. The Entries Secretary will post accepted entries when they are received back from the host club.
Going to a Gala
If this is your first gala please see our separate guide.
Training
The most important part of your preparation for any competition is your training, working hard and listening to your coach and their instructions is vitally important to your success when competing.
Poolside clothing
While on poolside it is important to stay warm and dry. When swimmers get out of the pool, they must dry themselves off properly before putting on dry clothes. We recommend you bring two towels and depending on the temperature poolside, track bottoms and your club T-shirt with a track top or hoody. Poolside does tend to be very warm but it is important to keep muscles warm between warm up and races.
Hats
The club red cap must be worn when competing and representing the club.
Food / Hydration
Keeping your energy levels stocked up and your body hydrated will help not only your performance in the pool but also your recovery after the race. Non-fizzy drinks should be in constant supply throughout the gala. Healthy poolside snacks should be prepared.
Pre competition signing in with the team
The gala information pack will advise you of the warm up time for each session. Your swimmer must be poolside with the club and make themselves known to the Team manager at least 15 minutes before hand. Please remember that parents / carers are not permitted poolside. Your swimmer must stay with the team during the competition and not wander off.
Signing out
During the lunch break please make arrangements to meet your swimmer as they will be your responsibility at this time. After their events are completed, they must advise the Team manager that they are leaving.
