Author Unknown – provided by the Gwinnett Swim League
1) Swimming always has an objective measure for the athlete: the “time” the swimmer performs in a stroke. There is no question about swimmer rank, and kids get feedback about exactly where they rank in the county.
2) Objective times remove politics from the sport. No subjective opinions about who is the best pitcher or quarterback. Coaches’ kids, among others, receive no preferences.
3) Objective measurement provides immediate feedback to athletes about the results of their hard work. If the swimmer practiced hard that week, then their time improves more. Swimmers learn immediately that it takes work and practice to accomplish goals. I didn’t learn that lesson until my 20’s.
4) Nobody warms the bench. All swimmers participate in every meet, not just the good ones. Swimmers cannot hurt the team by doing poorly, and can only help the team when they do well.
5) The goal is personal improvement, not winning. Everybody on the team can achieve his or her goals with work and practice.
6) Swimming coaches are paid (not very much), and they are professionals. Most do it because they love to teach kids to swim, not for the personal glory or to give their own kids an advantage.
7) Nobody yells at kids in swimming, except for the occasional over-exuberant parent. When it happens, we discourage that kind of behavior quickly.
8) It is one of the few sports where boys and girls compete on the same team.
9) It is the only sport where older accomplished athletes compete on the same team with younger kids. The older kids almost always assume the responsibilities of being role models, and they help the younger kids. It is very heart warming to see teenagers helping 8 year olds.
10) Serious swimmers don’t have the time to get involved with drugs or other bad influences.
11) It is a family sport. The entire family competes on the same team at the same time. No running the 8 year old to one game, and the other kids to other games.
12) It is extremely healthy. Better than sitting in front of the TV all summer. At night, the kids go right to sleep.
13) Almost no risk of injury. It is low impact. Athletes rarely get hauled off the field to a waiting ambulance because of a concussion, broken bone, or neck injury.
14) Girls are strongly encouraged to compete, and there are lots of scholarships for successful female athletes.
15) Swimmers who work at the sport for a period of years have a good chance of making the varsity team as freshmen in high school, and frequently earn varsity letters all 4 years.
16) Kids like to swim, and it is fun to watch kids learn.
17) It is a lifelong skill. It is very difficult to round up 21 of your closest friends and convince them to put on pads for an afternoon football game. After the competitive years are over, swimmers still have a healthy skill that can be used into advanced age.
18) People who know how to swim are unlikely to be hurt from water accidents such as falling into a lake or pool.