Team Parent Service Hours

Swimming is a sport that needs a great deal of parent involvement. Coaches are the only paid employees of the swim team; every other worker provides their time freely to support the team. If you have any questions or issues with these requirements, please email our Parent Service Coordinators, Courtney Shareck and Cristelle Koerper at lmstsharks@gmail.com.

Assistance from parents is required at both home and away meets. No experience is necessary for most of these roles and parents will get an opportunity to get hands on experience at the Mock Meet.

Sign ups for Parent Service Hours must be completed before the swimmer can enter the water for outdoor practice. The Parent Service Coordinators will contact you if you do not sign up.

Here is a list of job descriptions for each position that is needed for each swim meet:

Timer: Each lane ideally has three timers, which are supplied by both the home and away teams. This position gets the best views of the meet.

Runner: This person is responsible for gathering all of the time cards, sweep judge cards and “DQ” cards after each heat or event and takes them (“runs”) to the Head Table.

Awards/Ribbons (Table): This person ensures that all pre-printed labels go on the correct awards/ribbons, which are then placed in the correct team’s award box.

The Clerk of Course: is responsible for lining up the swimmers in event and heat order prior to sending them to the starting blocks. The “Clerk” should have an understanding of swim meet organization and may attend a preseason clinic.

The Starter: is responsible for lining the swimmers up at the starting blocks and ensuring a fair and equitable start.  Starters should have previous meet experience. JSL requires that starters attend the preseason Starter’s clinic or be USA Swimming or YMCA certified in this position.

The Stroke and Turn Judges: are positioned on the sides and ends of the pool to observe all swimmers for proper stroke and turn technique. They must disqualify (“DQ”) a swimmer for not swimming in accordance with the rules.  Stroke and Turn Judges must complete an online training course and attend a preseason JSL clinic or be USA Swimming, YMCA, or High School certified.

Sweep Judges: One person from each team is positioned at the finish line and serve as backups to the timers in determining the order of finish for every heat.  Although no preseason clinic is required, this position requires a cool head and a keen eye.

The Head of Table:  This person should be familiar with all procedures at the scoring and awards table (“the table”). JSL encourages persons interested in this position to attend the preseason “Table” clinic.

Sorter (Table): This is one of the most important positions at the “Table” and requires a thorough knowledge of sorting procedures and a cool head. The Sorter receives all of the cards from the Runner, “sorts” them into heat & event order, removes “DQ’s”, and determines the official time, place, and scoring for every swimmer.

Computer Operator and Assistant: These people receive the cards from the Sorter and are responsible for entering final data into the Meet Manager program. Both should be familiar with the Meet Manager Program and the operation of laptop computers and printers. JSL requires all Computer Operators to attend the preseason clinic for this position or be certified by the Software Consultant.

Backup Checker (Table): confirms that all official times have been entered correctly by the Computer Operator. It requires minimal training.