Coaches Need to Prepare for Start of Swimming and Diving Season
By Traci Neely, Assistant Athletic Director | Monday, December 05, 2011 9:37 AM
The swimming and diving competitive season is upon us.
Coaches need to make sure they complete required documents to begin the competitive season. Coaches must complete the UIL Individual Sport Eligibility Form and file a copy that includes a list of all varsity athletes with the District Executive Committee Chair prior to the first competition.
Coaches should retain a copy of the original eligibility list. Also, please remember to file a supplemental eligibility list in the case additional athletes come out for the team later in the season.
UIL policy allows swimming and diving athletes to train with a school coach all year. Each district determines the official start date of the competitive season.
The new diving rule may cause coaches growing pains. We recommend that coaches emphasize the change that pertains to the approach steps taken prior to the hop, skips or jumps. It is important for coaches and athletes to understand that diving judges must yield to the new rule for all competitions.
(The new rule) The NFHS Rule 9-5-2: A diver’s forward approach may contain steps, hops, leaps and/or jumps between the initial three steps and culminating hurdle.
Rationale: Supports the advancement of high school diving, and reflects the current trends in the variations of the forward approach and the athleticism of today’s high school divers.
Another area of concern for this year is the definition of “one” suit, which is clarified in the new language in the National Federation Rule Book for Swimming and Diving. Coaches, who have questions about a swimsuit when a modesty issue or religious dress is present, need to contact the UIL office to obtain a letter of authorization to allow for an exception to the swimsuit rule.
Coaches who would like to be certified for judging diving competitions need to contact the Lubbock ISD Dive Coach, Penny DiPomazio as soon as possible.
The National Federation of State High School Associations swimming and diving rules and interpretations for the 2011-12 season are available at: www.nfhs.org/Swimming.
The revised 2011-12 School Codes List for UIL hosted meets requiring HyTek® for entries is now posted on the UIL website for meet administrators to access. It is important that your entries are accompanied with the appropriate school code. If you have questions about a HyTek® code, please contact Jessica Lane at the UIL office.
The 2011-12 school code list for HyTek® is located at: www.uiltexas.org/files/athletics/hytek-codes.pdf.
The 2012-13 conference alignments for swimming and diving will be announced later this spring. Potential regional site hosts are now being considered. If a facility director or district would like to submit a letter of interest to host a regional championship, please contact me (Traci Neely) no later than Jan. 20, 2012.