12/14/18 – Swimming & Diving Updates & Reminders

December 14, 2018 Athletic Department Blog Updates

There are a variety of reminders and updates included below for Swimming & Diving Coaches and participants. The information below supersedes any previous communication/interpretation issued.

Regular Season Schedule for Both Swimming and Diving
The Association has been communicating with Invitational meet hosts in an attempt to update the KHSAA website listing. Please review and email Kara Howard (khoward@khsaa.org) with any details if you are hosting any type of swim meet, including a diving invitational. Please include details such as the use of electronic relay equipment, use of wedges and if diving is part of the meet. To report your meet, go to https://khsaa.org/invitational-regular-season-swimming-and-diving-meets/

Diving Coach Designation
Administrators, please make sure the information on your diving coach (name and email address) has been entered in the school personnel area through the KHSAA website to assist these coaches in getting proper communications from the office. Even if your swimming coach is also the diving coach, please indicate that through the school admin for communication purposes. 

Diving Meet Minimums for Postseason
Divers must compete in a minimum of four diving competitions to be eligible for postseason competition. Divers participating in a swimming event do not count that participation toward this minimum safety requirement. Remember also that a meet that allows exclusively diving competition for all teams participating in the meet DOES NOT count against the limit of meets for the school to ensure that the four-meet minimum can be administered.

Swimming Meet Minimums for Postseason
Other than for diving, there is no minimum number of meets required for swimmers to enter the postseason competition. The previous four meet minimum was removed by the KHSAA Board of Control in April 2018, and the decision on entry into various events is at the discretion of the school through the coach.

Diving Coach Online Course Requirement
As was shared in the rules clinics and the various fall administrator meetings, Diving coaches are reminded they must complete the NFHS “Coaching Diving” free online course to be eligible for the postseason. Go to nfhslearn.org to view the course.

Middle School Students and Below Competing and Practicing 
Only students enrolled in grades 7 and 8 and enrolled in the defined feeder pattern of the high school (enrolled in a school under the same Board of Education and also defined as in the feeder pattern by that Board of Education) may participate (practice and compete) at the high school level (freshmen, junior varsity and varsity). Students enrolled in grades below seven are not permitted to practice at the same time as the high school team and may not compete in high school meets. Example: Having the middle school team at one end of the pool while the high school team is at the other end of the pool would not be permissible. It has come to our attention that there may be some individuals creatively interpreting the rules to allow for this type of practice or may be operating under provisions that existed before the changes in state regulation that now preclude students below grade seven from participating.

State Meet Schedule
The state meet schedule has been discussed by the Swimming Advisory Committee and the Board of Control for several years, including as recently as the committee meeting in November 2017 as a means of addressing fire marshal concerns at the meet. With the current state meet format of 40 qualifiers in all events, it has become nearly impossible to accommodate all of the participants, fans and other individuals at any available state meet venue. 

The Board of Control approved the change in schedule to holding the prelims and finals of each gender on the same day at the State Meet. While this is a change, it is preferable to holding the two different gender meets on separate weekends.  

The detailed time schedule is being finalized and will be posted and released once it is complete. For 2019 the dates are Thursday, Feb. 21 Diving (Prelims), Friday, Feb. 22 Boys’ Swimming Prelims and Finals (including diving), Saturday, Feb. 23 Girls’ Swimming Prelims and Finals (including diving). All competition will be held at the Ralph Wright Natatorium on the campus of the University of Louisville.

State Meet Site
The Board of Control approved the 2019 championships to be conducted at the Ralph Wright Natatorium on the campus of the University of Louisville and the 2020 championships to be conducted at the Lancaster Aquatic Center on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington, Feb. 27-29.

Please contact Associate Commissioner Butch Cope with any Swimming & Diving questions at bcope@khsaa.org.

– KHSAA –

The KHSAA staff routinely publishes blog posts to better communicate with its various constituencies and the public. For a list of those blogs, go to http://khsaa.org/news-stats-pubs/sports-blogs/