Exciting Swim Meets

Competitive swimming is an exciting and (hopefully) enjoyable experience, though sometimes a daunting one to begin with.  Meets can seem complex when you are new to swimming.  However, our coaches are all happy to explain the process to new swimmers and parents, as are other parents in the club!

‍

‍

What is a swim meet?

Swim Meets are another name for swimming competitions and are an opportunity for swimmers to compete in events against other swimmers from our club and from other clubs around the country.  There are different types of swim meets including club nights, club champs, local, regional and national meets.  There are also meets for Club Swimmers and Competitive Swimmers.

‍

‍

What's the difference between a Club and Competitive swimmer?

When a swimmer joins a swimming club, their details are entered onto the Swimming New Zealand (SNZ) database as either a Club Swimmer or a Competitive Swimmer.

‍

A Club Swimmer is a newcomer to swimming.  Generally a Club Swimmer would begin competing at club nights and local meets held in the Nelson/Marlborough region.  There is an annual registration fee which is paid to SNZ.  The registration fee for Club Swimmers is $15.25.  The SNZ registration year is from 1 July-30 June.  The club sends out information to its membership at the beginning of the registration year to advise that registration fees are due, but you can join at any time of the year - contact the Club Recorder for further information.

‍

As a swimmer becomes more confident and proficient in their strokes and wishes to compete in bigger meets, a swimmer would then become a Swimming New Zealand Competitive Swimmer.  The annual registration fee for Competitive Swimmers is $95.00.  A swimmer is able to upgrade from a Club Swimmer to a Competitive Swimmer during the year.  Contact the Club Recorder for further information.

‍

‍

Club Nights and Club Champs

Nelson South runs a Club Night Series during the summer months.  Our club nights are a fun introduction to competitive swimming for our newer members and an opportunity for our older swimmers to try out different events.  Club Nights and Club Champs are open to all Nelson South members - both club and competitive. Click on the links for further information:

• ‍Club Nights
• ‍Club Champs

‍

Local Meets

Local meets are hosted by clubs in the Nelson Marlborough region and are open to club and competitive swimmers.  They can be 1 or more sessions in length and offer a variety of events over many distances.  Some meets may also be ribbon carnivals where swimmers will receive a ribbon if they swim a pb (personal best).

‍

Regional Meets

Swimming Nelson-Marlborough (SNM) hosts 3 main meets each year:  the SNM Country & Town meet; the SNM Long Course Championships (in summer) and the SNM Short Course Championships (in winter).  These meets are only open to Competitive Swimmers and with many trophies up for grabs, are hotly contested swim carnivals.  The Country & Town meet is held in January and is a very popular meet.  It often attracts swimmers from outside of the region who are holidaying or holding swim camps in Nelson.  The SNM Long Course Champs are generally held in early February at Nayland Pool (outside 50m pool) in Nelson, and the Short Course Champs are held at Stadium 2000 in Blenheim in either July or August.

‍

National and other meets

As swimmers get more serious and achieve faster times, they seek out events in Christchurch or Wellington or further afield to gain more experience at larger meets.  Every year there are regional, South Island and national events that require swimmers to achieve qualifying times.  All meet information is listed on our website under Calendar, and Swimming New Zealand releases a yearly competition booklet at the end of July which list the various meets and their qualifying times.  These events can be found on the Swimming New Zealand website also.

• A printable regional swim calendar is on our website under Meet Calendar.
• A printable SNZ Competition Booklet is on our website under Meet Calendar.