Basic Swimming Terms 

  • Age Groups: 6 & Under, 8 & Under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
  • Blocks - The starting platform.  Located at the deepest end of the pool.
  • Bullpen - The location where swimmers wait as a team before their events.  Volunteers working in the bullpen call swimmers from the bullpen to line up in their assigned lane.
  • DQ - Disqualification.  This occurs when the swimmer has committed an infraction at the start, during the race, or on the turn/finish.  The stroke and turn judge will fill out a slip and give it to the scoring table. A disqualified swimmer is not eligible to receive awards.  The Trident Conference rules state that for the first four meets of each season, any swimmer in the 8 & Under age group will not be DQ’d.
  • Exhibition Events - These events are in addition to regular events and are non-point earning for the team.  The swimmers still earn ribbons for these events.  
  • Freestyle - The most common "stroke" used is the crawl, but any stroke may be performed.
  • Individual Medley (I.M.) - This event features all four strokes. It starts with butterfly, then to backstroke, then to breaststroke, and finally freestyle, a total of 4 lengths of the pool (100 yards).
  • Free Relay - This event consists of four freestylers each swimming one-quarter of the total distance.
  • Medley Relay -  All four strokes are swum in this event, but performed by four different swimmers.  The first swimmer does backstroke, the second breaststroke, the third butterfly, and the final swimmer anchors the relay with freestyle.
  • Scratch - To withdraw from an event prior to it being held in competition.  Since a relay consists of 4 swimmers, if you have to leave before the end of a meet, please let the coaches know so another swimmer can be slotted to swim.
  • Time Drop - Any amount of time that is less than what was swam previously in the same event.
  • 25 yards = 1 length of the pool.  8 & Under and 9-10 age group events.
  • 50 yards = 2 lengths of the pool.  11-12, 13-14, and 15-18 age group events.

 

For more extensive swimming terms, go to [PARENT RESOURCES] and select [SWIMMING GLOSSARY] pull-down sub-menu. You can also click this link.