THE OFFICIAL WORD

BACK TO COMPETITION: AN OFFICIAL’S PERSPECTIVE

BY JASON JOHNSON

Throughout this period of fewer and smaller-than-normal meets, the goal of USA Swimming cannot be ignored. We must assemble and prepare the best possible athletes to represent the United States in the Olympic Games rescheduled for this summer.

Our swimmers need professional and competitive meets, but they must be safe for all involved. They must also follow local mandates and directives, which can vary from region to region. This process began again with the first TYR Pro Swim Series Meet of 2021. Extraordinary steps were taken to ensure that all participants (swimmers, coaches, facility staff and officials) would remain healthy.

Once the venues had been selected, every effort was made to invite officials who would require minimal travel and who had not tested positive for COVID. All officials were required to take a COVID test 72 hours before they arrived at the facility.

Test results, which were emailed to USA Swimming, needed to be negative before an individual could enter the facility. There were temperature and credential checks at the entrances...and masks were required at all times. Even the meeting room for the officials was arranged such that all chairs were six feet apart, and each person was assigned his/her own chair. The meeting times were also cut in half to minimize the time spent in the meeting room, and only pre-packaged food was allowed.

Once on deck, the main goal was to safely perform the duties required for the event—observing the competition and recording the backup times—while maintaining a safe distance. To achieve this goal, all movements of the officials were analyzed and adjusted throughout the meet and for each event.

For example, the officials’ chairs would normally be on deck next to the chairs for the athletes. For the TYR Pro Swim Series, there were only chairs for the athletes. The officials remained off deck as long as possible. At the conclusion of each heat, the officials left the deck before the athletes exited the pool. There was no interaction between officials and swimmers, and clipboards and watches were sanitized before and after each session. All this was done for a television audience only. No spectators were allowed.

While this article only touches on the safety measures taken, it is a picture of what meets may look like for a while longer. If we want to provide meets that will prepare our athletes for international competition (and we know we must), we should also be willing to take the extra steps to keep all involved safe. For officials, that will mean a far different experience...but one that is still rewarding!

EXCELLENCE AWARD

CYNTHIA SHANNON

Cynthia Shannon has dedicated much of her life to volunteer work, community programs, church programs and education programs. She is extremely dedicated to the sport of swimming, teams, individuals, families and community. Cynthia, who received North Carolina Swimming’s Volunteer of the Year award in 2019, has worked at swim meets as a timer, hospitality chair, concessions manager, meet director and CTS operator, running video wire and helping out in any other area needed. She has always used her knowledge and expertise gained in these positions to improve and advance to the next volunteer opportunity. As a USA official, Cynthia is very knowledgeable in setting up all levels of meets, and inspires the volunteers to orchestrate every aspect with precision and professionalism. She never hesitates to coach, mentor or counsel swim officials, swimmers or parent volunteers. Cynthia regularly makes long trips to help support meets, perform clinics, evaluate officials for advancement and provide direction at all levels. To understand just how valuable she is to the sport, her USA Swimming Official Tracking System history that shows the 200plus sessions she’s performed in a single year speaks volumes.