The club takes part in three leagues, the Chiltern League, the Milton Keynes and District Junior League (up to 12 and under) and the West Midlands Division of the National Speedo League. The Chiltern League is a C‑grade competition with ‘no faster than’ time limits, but we pick our fastest team within those limits (exceeding the speed limit means that no points are scored for that event). The Junior and Speedo leagues are very competitive and we field our best available team for every gala.
The club also takes part in a number of one-off galas with other clubs.
Flitwick Dolphins is a competitive swimming
club and we enter competitions with the aim of winning, as we did in the Junior
League in 2005, or doing as well as we can.
We therefore pick the fastest team available. The team list is drafted using the PB times of every swimmer for
each event. The coaches then make
adjustments to the team as they see fit; the coaches have the final word on
selection.
The only way for a swimmer to
break into the team is to become faster than a swimmer who is already in it,
using splashnights, Club and County Championships, time trials and Open Meets
to set times. Team selection is also
influenced by availability and by age: having a birthday may promote you from
one age band into the next and create an opportunity for a younger swimmer.
As the name suggests, Open Meets are open to anyone, although most charge a fee and have qualifying times that a swimmer must have achieved in order to enter. Open Meets are set at different levels, so all of our swimmers should be able to take part in some of them. Some meets are licensed by the ASA; times set at these meets are used to compile the national rankings and can be used for entry into the Regional and National championships. The coaches would be happy to advise any swimmer on which events it would be suitable for them to enter.
The club targets a number of
meets through the year at which it provides poolside coaching.
The Bedfordshire County championships are held in March and are an important event for the club. Every swimmer who qualifies should enter.
The next levels up are the
East Region, which holds age group, youth and open championships, and the
Nationals. The qualifying times for
these championships are very tough.
The Club Championships are open to every swimmer in the club, are great fun, often very competitive and a great opportunity to establish PBs. They are held in the Autumn.