TSM GROUP PLACEMENT PHILOSOPHY

 MANY FACTORS INFLUENCE GROUP PLACEMENT:

Some can easily be explained or enumerated, while others may be influenced by coaching instinct or experience. Clearly communicating our team wide philosophy for group placement will enable a better appreciation of the decisions that determine group placement. First, a swimmer’s group placement only indicates a floor – not a ceiling! Each group has minimum time standards for placement (the floor) but does not have a limit on any swimmer’s achievements (the ceiling). Swimmers in Age Group are sometimes faster than Senior swimmers; some Senior Performance swimmers could have achieved higher time standards than some National Prep swimmers. Overlap always exists.

SOME OF THE IMPORTANT FACTORS DRIVING GROUP PLACEMENT ARE THE FOLLOWING:

Training ability and technique. (Does your swimmer practice at the same level they race, and make the technical changes asked by the coach?)

• Leadership. (Are the swimmer’s actions positively influencing others in the group?)

• Commitment. (Practice attendance, meet participation, the priority of the sport)

• Maturity. (Chronological age, physiological age, ability to deal with change, and emotional development)

• Meet results. (As these translate to meet qualifications and training needs)

• Group size (how many swimmers can each group take in order to keep the number of swimmers per lane manageable)