Glossary of Swim Terms
25: One length of the pool (yards or meters depending on the venue. Millbridge is yards).
50: Two lengths of the pool.
100: Four lengths of the pool.
Alternate: If a swimmer cannot participate in a relay, alternates are designated to step in. Alternates are also assigned to the All Star meet.
Backstroke: One of the four competitive strokes. The swimmer’s arm travels one at a time in a windmill style from the swimmer’s side, up over the swimmer’s head and then into the water. The swimmer is on their back and legs are flutter kicking. This stroke starts in the water. The Backstroke is the first stroke in the medley relay and the second stroke in the Individual Medley.
Breaststroke: One of the four competitive strokes. Swimmer’s hands begin near the upper chest and push sideways then back, but they may not travel beyond the hips, except when the swimmer is starting or turning. The elbows remain underwater, the head comes above the water during each stroke, and the legs execute a propulsive kick with feet pointed outward. Breaststroke is swum as the second stroke in the Medley Relay and the third stroke in the Individual Medley.
Butterfly: One of the four competitive strokes. Swimmers keep their shoulders level with the water’s surface while simultaneously moving their arms and legs. The arms move together in an overhand stroke breaking the water’s surface while the legs do a dolphin kick, moving up and down together, rather than fluttering up and down individually. Butterfly is swum as the third stroke in the medley Relay and the first stroke in the Individual Medley.
Best Time/Personal Best: A best time is achieved when a swimmer beats their previous “best time” in an event. Regardless of how swimmers finish in the race, swimmers always try to improve their time by swimming faster, thus beating their previous time in an event.
Clerk of Course: The person designated to line up swimmers. This is usually done 6 heats ahead of time in a specially designated location on the pool deck (normally behind the blocks). There are usually 2 or more Assistants to help the head clerk.
Disqualification (DQ): When a Stroke and Turn judge determines the swimmer has committed a stroke infraction.
Event: Meets are broken down into 70 Events. This is defined by the age group, gender and swimming stroke. Girls’ events are odd-numbered and boys are even-numbered.
False Start: When a swimmer leaves the starting block before the starter horn signal.
Flags: Backstroke flags are placed at both ends of the pool 15 feet from the end to serve as a warning to backstroke swimmers that they are nearing the wall for a turn or a finish.
Freestyle: One of the four competitive strokes performed on the stomach consisting of alternating overarm strokes and a flutter kick. Freestyle is the 4th stroke in the Medley Relay and the Individual Medley.
Freestyle Relay: Relay event consisting of 4 legs of freestyle swam by 4 different swimmers.
Heat: Events that have more swimmers entered than available lanes. In most cases there are multiple heats in events. If a pool has six lanes, a heat usually consists of six swimmers (but sometimes less). In summer swim league the fastest swimmers are in heat one.
Heat Sheets: This is the official schedule of swimmers in their assigned events. Also known as the meet program. The meet management software creates heats and assigns lanes.
Heat Winner:The swimmer that touches the wall first in a heat. This does not mean this swimmer is the winner of the event. The winner of the event is the best time achieved in the entire event.
Heat Ribbons: Heat Ribbons are given to the Heat Winner in all 10 and under individual events - but not relay events.
Individual Medley (IM): Event that consists of all four competitive strokes performed by an individual swimmer. The order of the IM is Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle.
Lane: Pools are divided into lanes (normally 6) by a floating line. Lane Lines are used to make sure individuals do not interfere with other swimmers.
Medley Relay: Event that consists of all four competitive strokes performed by four individual swimmers. Order of the Medley Relay is Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Freestyle.
No Time/NT: On a heat sheet a swimmer will have NT next to their name if they do not have an official time in our Meet Manager software; meaning they have never swam that stroke in one of our meets using this particular software.
Seeding/Seed Time: Swimmers that have times in Meet Manager are arranged into heats based on their times for that particular event. Seed Time (usually a swimmer's best time in our league) is the time used to determine where a swimmer is placed in an event.
Starter: The official in charge of signaling the beginning of a race.
Starting Block: The raised platform swimmers use to dive from when a race begins.
Stroke and Turn Judge: The trained official at meets that determines if a swimmer is swimming a particular stroke accurately. If a swimmer is not swimming a particular stroke accurately the Stroke and Turn Judge may issue a disqualification slip. If a swimmer is DQ’ed their time and finish is not recorded and their swim does not count.
Timer: An official that stands at the finish end of a race with a stopwatch to record a swimmer’s time. The Timer starts the stopwatch when the starter signals the beginning of the race and stops the stopwatch when any part of the swimmer's body (or the last swimmer in a relay) touches the wall.
