How to Enter a Competition: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide

Entering your first swimming competition (we call them 'meets' or 'galas') is an exciting step! The process is straightforward, and this guide will walk you through it from start to finish. Our entire entry system is managed through the club website to keep things simple and streamlined for everyone.

Step 1: The Meet Invitation Email & Spond

For any competition the club is supporting, you will receive an invitation email. This email is your starting point and will contain all the key information. Be sure to read it carefully!

Inside, you will find:

  • A "Meet Pack" with details on the venue, date, schedule of events, and any Qualifying Times (QTs) required.

  • The entry fees per race.

  • AST's internal closing date for entries. This is the most important date to remember!

Alongside the email, you'll also see the event pop up in our club app, Spond. Please RSVP on Spond so we know who is planning to attend. Spond is our primary tool for sending quick updates, schedule changes, and for easy communication with coaches or the Meet Secretary leading up to and during the event.

IMPORTANT: RSVPing on Spond lets us know you're interested, but it does not enter you into the competition. You must still complete Step 3 on the club website to formally enter your races.

Step 2: Choose Your Swimmer's Events

Once you've reviewed the meet pack, it's time to choose which races to enter.

For our younger swimmers, we strongly encourage entering a variety of strokes and distances (including the Individual Medley or 'IM') to help develop well-rounded skills.

Top Tip: If you are ever unsure which events to enter, please speak to your swimmer's coach. They will be happy to provide guidance on what is most suitable.

Step 3: Submit Your Entry Online

All meet entries must be submitted through the AST club website before our internal closing date. This allows our volunteer Meet Secretary enough time to process all the entries and submit them as a single team.

Step 4: Confirmation & Payment

After our closing date, a draft list of entries will be emailed out for you to double-check. Once this is confirmed, the club submits the final entry to the meet organisers.

When the entries are accepted, the fees will be collected automatically via your existing GoCardless Direct Debit.

  • No more BACS transfers! It's all handled for you.

  • A small admin fee (usually £5 per swimmer) is added to the total entry cost. This helps cover essential costs like the coaches' passes and expenses for the day.

Step 5: Final Meet Details

Once the meet organisers have processed all entries from all clubs, they will send us a final list of accepted swims and confirmed warm-up times. As soon as we receive this, we will forward it to all participating families, usually via email and a notification on Spond.

Frequently Asked Questions

❓ What if a meet is oversubscribed? (Understanding "Rejections")

Sometimes, a meet receives more entries than it has space for. When this happens, the organisers may have to 'reject' (also known as 'scratching') some swimmers to stay within time limits. This is usually done by removing the swimmers with the slowest entry times for an event. If your swimmer is rejected from a race you have paid for, the entry fee for that race will be refunded to you.

❓ What if I miss the closing date?

Unfortunately, meet organisers are very strict with their deadlines, so we are unable to accept any late entries once our internal club closing date has passed. We recommend submitting your entry as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

❓ What about National events?

The process for National Championships is slightly different, as entries are made directly by individuals through the Swim England website. The coaching team will provide full guidance to any swimmers who qualify for these prestigious events.

Signing up for an event

This brings up the entry details. The events come up in the order they are on the programme.

Please note that times have an S for short course time or L for long course time. The file from the meet will search out the swimmers fastest time and convert it to the meet pool length. In this case you might think the times are incorrect but there is a recognised system that converts times between pool lengths. Any queries about times should be directed to Stevie Dixon at [email protected]

Please DO NOT try to change times yourself or put in times where there is NT for no times, talk to Stevie Dixon at [email protected] or face to face at the pool.

Once entered DON’T FORGET to click Save Changes.