Guide to Galas

1. ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE WITH YOU; YOUR ‘PINK’ EVENT CARDS (IF APPLICABLE), A COOL DRINK (NOT FIZZY), EXTRA TOWEL, TEE SHIRT (WARM TOP) FOR THE POOLSIDE.
   Advice regarding plastic bottles.
   
2. TURN UP AND ENSURE YOU REGISTER/POST ‘PINK’ EVENT CARDS (IF APPLICABLE, SEE PHOTOCOPY) 30 MINS BEFORE WARM UP.
   
3. LISTEN FOR ANNOUNCEMENTS REGARDING WARM UP LANES, SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS, IMPENDING EVENTS, ETC.
   
4. DURING WARM UP, TAKE CARE TO WARM UP SLOWLY, DON’T RUSH. MAKE SURE YOU ARE SWIMMING IN THE CORRECT DIRECTION AND ON THE CORRECT SIDE OF THE LANE.
   
5. ENSURE YOU PRACTISE YOUR EVENT STROKE AND TURNS ESPECIALLY BACKSTROKE, PRACTISE COUNTING STROKES FROM FLAGS TO WALL/FLAGS TO TURN.
   
6. IF TIMING PADS ARE USED PRESSURE MUST BE EXERTED AGAINST THE PAD TO REGISTER YOUR TIME. DO NOT CLIMB ONTO THE PADS WHEN GETTING IN AND OUT OF THE WATER….USE THE STEPS.
   
7. BEFORE YOUR EVENT YOU WILL HAVE TO MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN TO THE COMPETITORS STEWARD, THIS CAN BE IN AN AREA AWAY FROM ALL OTHER SWIMMERS OR, AS IN OUR CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS, IT WILL BE ON THE POOLSIDE.
   
8. SWIMMERS WILL BE TAKEN TO THE START AREA TWO HEATS PRIOR TO THEIR RACE. THE SWIMMERS WILL BE LINED UP IN LANE ORDER.REMEMBER TO TAKE YOUR GOGGLES/HAT AND ‘PINK’ CARD (IF APPLICABLE) WITH YOU.
   
9. AS SOON AS THE PRECEDING RACE TO YOUR RACE HAS STARTED MOVE TO A POSITION BEHIND YOUR ALLOCATED LANE, HAND THE ‘PINK’ CARD TO THE TIMEKEEPER AND PREPARE FOR YOUR RACE….THINK ABOUT THE START, WHAT STROKE YOU ARE GOING TO DO, APPROACHING THE TURNS, WHAT TYPE OF TURN AND WHAT TO DO TO ENSURE YOU DO NOT GET DISQUALIFIED, ETC.
   
10. WHEN IT IS YOUR TURN TO RACE THE FOLLOWING ORDER WILL BE USED:

• FIRST WHISTLE: THE REFEREE BLOWS THIS AND IF YOU ARE DOING FLY/BREAST/FRONT CRAWL YOU MUST CLIMB ONTO THE BLOCK, APPROACH THE FRONT WITH TOES AT THE EDGE. IF IT IS BACKSTROKE THEN YOU MUST ENTER THE WATER AND PREPARE FOR THE START.

• SECOND WHISTLE: THE REFEREE WILL RAISE HIS HAND AND SIGNAL TO THE STARTER, YOU ARE NOW UNDER THE CONTROL OF THE STARTER.

• STARTER WILL SAY, "TAKE YOUR MARKS", WHEN EVERY SWIMMER IS STILL A ‘BEEP’ SIGNAL OR GUN SHOT WILL SIGNAL THE START OF THE RACE.

1. IN THE EVENT OF A FALSE START, A ‘BEEP, BEEP, BEEP’ SIGNAL OR SECOND GUN SHOT WILL BE HEARD. THE STEWARD WILL RELEASE THE FALSE START ROPE. AT CERTAIN EVENTS A SINGLE START RULE WILL BE APPLIED, YOU WILL BE DISQUALIFIED IF YOU DO ONE FALSE START AT THIS TYPE OF GALA. AT BASC CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS WE ADOPT THE ONE-START RULE.
   
2. FOR A TWO-START EVENT WHERE A FALSE START HAS OCCURRED ALL SWIMMERS ARE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE, THE REFEREE WILL ANNOUNCE "SWIMMERS, THIS IS YOUR SECOND START", ANY SWIMMER COMMITTING A FALSE START WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE DISQUALIFIED, IRRESPECTIVE OF WHETHER THE HEAT/FINAL HAS STARTED OR NOT. FOR THE SECOND START, THE FALSE START ROPE WILL NOT BE LOWERED AND THE HEAT/FINAL WILL BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE TO ITS CONCLUSION.
3. THINGS TO REMEMBER DURING THE RACE TO REDUCE THE RISK OF BEING DISQUALIFIED:

• BACKSTROKE: DO NOT TURN ONTO YOUR FRONT UNTIL THE RACE HAS FINISHED APART FROM AT THE TURN, DO NOT KICK/PULL INTO THE TURN. DO NOT STAND UP.
• BREASTSTROKE: ENSURE THAT YOU TURN/FINISH WITH TWO HANDS TOGETHER, REMEMBER TO DO ONLY ONE PULL/KICK UNDERWATER AT THE START AND TURN. DO NOT STAND UP.
• FLY: AS WITH BREASTSTROKE YOU MUST TURN/FINISH WITH TWO HANDS TOGETHER, THERE MUST BE NO FORWARD MOVEMENT OF THE HANDS UNDERWATER (ARM STROKE MUST ALWAYS BE OVER THE WATER). DO NOT STAND UP.

1. AT THE END OF THE HEAT/FINAL, ALL SWIMMERS MUST STAY IN THE WATER UNTIL ADVISED BY THE REFEREE TO CLEAR THE POOL.
2. REMEMBER IF YOU’VE TRIED YOUR BEST, NOBODY CAN JUDGE YOU, AND IF, UNFORTUNATELY, YOU HAVE BEEN DISQUALIFIED, FIND OUT WHY AND USE IT AS A LEARNING OPPORTUNITY, FIND SOMETHING POSITIVE IN THE DISQUALIFICATION WITH WHICH TO IMPROVE.
   

Tony COULING