The NCAA News - News & Features

Swimming committee seeks 25-meter pools during Olympic years

Championships currently take place as 25-yard short-course competitions

The NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming Committee approved a proposal during its annual meeting September 22-25 that would allow the Division I men's and women's championships in 2000 to be conducted as 25-meter short-course competitions.

The proposal, which is subject to NCAA Executive Committee approval, is designed to have the Division I championships conducted in 25-meter courses during years in which the Olympic Games are held, thus giving competitors the opportunity to achieve world records during those championships and increase exposure for the sport.

Currently, all NCAA championships are conducted as 25-yard short-course competitions.

To accommodate the change, two sets of national collegiate records would be kept.

The committee also will study the possibility of implementing this policy every other year -- rather than only in Olympic years -- to coincide with the world championships.

"This is a significant proposal for several reasons," said Donald L. Gambril, assistant athletics director at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, and committee chair. "It really would give us an anchor point for NCAA swimming in international competition. We can showcase world records now and be evaluated on a world standard. This will certainly be looked upon as a positive step for NCAA swimming."

The committee also discussed time-conversion factors -- specifically converting from meters to yards -- and recommended that data from recent championships be recompiled in order to obtain new conversion factors, if necessary.

In other actions, the committee heard presentations from representatives from United States Swimming (USS) and the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA). The committee asked the CSCAA to form a legislative subcommittee to study legislative issues affecting swimming, in order to strengthen the sport's position on proposals that reach the floor of the NCAA Convention.

In addition, the committee agreed to forward to the Executive Committee a proposal to add diving representatives from Divisions I and III to the swimming committee. The proposal would increase committee membership to 20 and maintain the current ratio of representation among the three divisions.

The committee also formed a subcommittee to study the impact of the annual rules survey and monitor how proposals are submitted and selected to appear on the survey.

Following are other actions and items of interest discussed during meetings of division subcommittees:

Division I

The Division I subcommittee will recommend to the Executive Committee that the 1998 Division I men's championships be held at Auburn University, and that the 1998 Division I women's championships be conducted at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

The subcommittee also discussed ways to establish a waiver policy that would permit an increase in practice time from 20 to 24 hours per week. The subcommittee also discussed a proposal to relax the "four-hours-per-day" rule.

In other actions, the subcommittee:

* Adopted rules requiring additional documentation prior to acceptance of qualifying times achieved in meets conducted after an institution's conference championships.

* Discussed a proposal to establish a trust fund for collegiate athletes who earn prize money during Olympic competition but who choose to retain their intercollegiate eligibility. Such a trust fund only would include prize money earned from performance and not revenue from endorsement of products.

* Agreed to enact tougher policies regarding deck-access credentials and the illegal use of credentials at the NCAA championships.

Division II

The Division II subcommittee recommended the establishment of "B" qualifying standards for optional entries beginning with the 1998 championships.

As a result, all competitors swimming an optional entry at the championships -- including relays -- must have met the "B" qualifying standard. In addition, relay-only swimmers will be allowed to swim optional entries in individual events in 1998.

The subcommittee also adopted rules requiring additional documentation prior to acceptance of qualifying times achieved in meets conducted after an institution's conference championships.

Division III

The Division III subcommittee focused on the selection of divers for the 1998 men's and women's championships.

The subcommittee recently was directed by the NCAA Division III Championships Committee to propose an alternative to the current process of conducting prequalification meets at championships sites. The subcommittee appointed a diving task force to explore options and report to the subcommittee by November 1.

The subcommittee also will forward to the Executive Committee a proposal to establish a process of publishing qualifying times during the 1997-98 season.

Coaches would be required to fax proof-of-performance forms within 48 hours after a meet in which a swimmer achieves at least a "B" qualifying standard. Times then would be compiled and could be accessed via the NCAA fax-on-demand system.

In addition, the subcommittee has begun soliciting sites for the 1999 and 2000 Division III men's and women's championships.

The 1998 championships will be at the St. Peter's Rec Plex in St. Louis and will be hosted by Principia College. Institutions interested in submitting bid proposals for the 1999 or 2000 championships should contact Christine M. Pohl, assistant director of championships, at the NCAA national office.

In other actions, the Division III subcommittee:

* Established a 6:30 p.m. daily starting time for finals at the Division III men's and women's championships.

* Adopted rules requiring additional documentation prior to acceptance of qualifying times achieved in meets conducted after an institution's conference championships.

* Established a checklist to be included in the cover memorandum accompanying the championships entry forms. The checklist is designed to help reduce clerical and other entry procedure errors.

* Discussed the establishment of a range of fines regarding entry-procedure errors. Fines would range from $25 to $100 and would be assessed according to the severity of the error.

* Established the following schedule for diving events at the 1997 Division III men's and women's championships: Thursday -- one-meter trials and finals; Friday -- three-meter trials; and Saturday -- three-meter finals.

Swimming rules actions

In addition to making minor editorial changes to the NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Rules book, the NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming Committee approved several rules changes during its September 22-25 meeting in Kansas City, Missouri.

The changes will become effective for the 1997-98 season.

The committee:

* Clarified the backstroke start for backstroke relay events, stipulating that swimmers must comply with the 15-meter rule after the dive.

* Stipulated that in a nonchampionships meet, a competitor who officially has been entered in an event but who does not compete shall be disqualified from that event only.

* Stipulated that the Division I women's platform diving finals will consist of four optional dives from four different groups and from any platform level(s), in any order, without limit on degree of difficulty.

* Restructured the bona fide competition section in the rules book to improve its accessibility.

* Revised Rule 6-5-3-b-2-g to state that if a diver is not present to perform the dive when announced and it is ascertained that the diver is not in the pool area, after three minutes the referee shall declare a failed dive.