Competition Information

To help navigate competitions, below is information from Wisbech Swimming Club, British Swimming and Swim England

Competition Structure

License Categories

Competitions held in England & Britain have 4 license categories:

Level 1 - These are often the largest open meets and competitions across the country and usually held in 50m pools (Long Course). The entry requirements are much stricter with tougher Qualifying Times (QT's) and other criteria e.g. licensed only times
Level 2 - These are large open meets, with strict qualifying times (if you have a personal best slower than the qualifying time you can not race that event at this meet)
Level 3 - These will be smaller open meets, with generous cut off times (if you have a personal best faster than the cut off time you can not race that event at this meet) or minimum age requirements to make it easier to enter and get licensed times
Level4 - These are small competitions and at bigger clubs, Club Championships

Swim England Events

These license categories allow swimmers to achieve licensed times which will go onto the Swim England database and will assist in qualifying for Swim England and British Swimming Events. All these events will require swimmers to meet specific qualifying times.

County Development Championships - Normally held around June/July and aims to help swimmers who are very close to achieving County Championship Times
County Championships - These are held over 2 to 3 weekends in January/February in Cambridge
Regional Summer Championships - Held in July each season
Regional Long Course Championships - These are usually held in late April/early May
Regional Short Course Championships - These are usually held in November
British Summer Championships - End of season meet, the top 24 ranked swimmers in each age group are invited to compete
British Championships/Olympic - Trials Held in April each season. Olympic trials held in the year of an Olympic Games.

Wisbech Swimming Club Events

To help swimmers develop, we either hold our own club events or attend other events. This will give swimmers the experience required for competitive events.

Spring Gala (unlicensed) - Held around April for Junior Squad
Club Championships (unlicensed) - Held around October and it is expected all swimmers attend this. This gives swimmers the opportunity to register times for all types of strokes and distances
Junior Fenland League (JFL) (unlicensed)- A league for swimmers under 13 involving multiple clubs from the area (e.g. March, St Ives, Huntingdon, Mildenhall etc.) and 4 rounds followed by a Final. this is spread out between March and September
Senior Fenland League (SFL) (unlicensed) - A league for the top squads of each club to attend. This is usually held in September and is a single day event including the final
COPS Season Opener (licensed) - Usually held in September and allows swimmers to enter without licensed times and gain licensed times
COPS Winter Meet (licensed) - Usually our last meet of the year and held in November. Another evet for swimmers to enter without licensed times and gain licensed times
Long Course (licensed) - Usually held around March/April and uses a 50m long pool. We usually choose either Corby, Norwich or Luton to attend.

Preparing for a competitive event

We use our Swim Club Manager (SCM) system to send out invites to all events, which will arrive via email. These will have all the information on about the venue, session times, race order etc. To enter, you must complete which events you wish to race by the deadline date outlined in the email, so we can submit this to the hosting club.

At competitive events and as an athlete, it's very important that the food and drink you consume can have an impact on your swimming.

You must ensure that you bring the correct kit with you to these events.

If you are unsure about any of the above, please speak to one of our coaches, who will be happy to answer any questions.