When your swimmer first joins the club you have no idea of what a rollercoaster ride you are about to start out on.

There are so many questions that we all have and all continue to have about the rules of swimming, what kit do we need to get and then the big one HOW DO GALAS WORK?

So we are going to try and answer as many questions as possible within this post by describing the differences within galas. Hopefully you will find it useful!!!

Firstly we are a competitive club and believe that galas are key to a swimmer’s development. However with that being said no swimmer is expected to take part in galas and that choice is down to each individual.

So let’s get started if a gala is “Licensed” this means the gala is ran under the rules of Swim England. This means if a swimmer starts early, performs the wrong stroke or completes a turn or finish incorrectly they will be disqualified from that race!

Also any times achieved at a licensed gala (meet) will then go on to the ASA database and can be used to enter other galas if licensed entry times are needed.

There are four levels of licensed galas and as well as this we run our time trials which are unlicensed. I will try and give a brief description of the differences between each level of gala and give an example of a gala our swimmers may attend within each level.

Unlicensed Time Trials

The club aim to run time trials quarterly and they are used by our coaches to see how swimmers are performing and improving. Our coaches will use the times achieved at time trials to decide which swimmers are ready to move into higher groups within the club, as well as seeing if anyone is ready to go and try out at squad (Wigan BEST) and they will also use these times to pick swimmers to represent our club in team galas.

This will almost certainly be the first taste our new and younger swimmers will have of something like a licensed gala. Everything will be setup like a licensed gala, however rather than a swimmer being disqualified if they make an error or break a rule, a note will be made and this will be worked on in training.

Licensed Level 4 Gala

These galas are generally a licensed gala for one club only. All the rules from swim England will apply and swimmers can be disqualified.

There are not normally any qualifying times required for these galas as they are used to allow swimmers the chance to  gain new times which will allow them to enter higher level Gala’s.

An example of a level 4 gala that our swimmers have access to is our Club Championships that run once a year this is currently in the summer months but can change.

Level 3 Gala

These Gala’s (Meets) can be held in both short course pools (25m) and long course pools (50m).

These galas will generally use qualifying times (swimmers will have had to swim faster than these times within a set time frame).

Some galas will also use Upper Time Limits (swimmers can not have swam faster than these times within a set time frame). This is done to make sure some of the galas stay classed as a development gala allowing young and up and coming swimmers the chance to achieve qualifying times into higher level competition.

Carrying on with this in mind some level 3 galas will allow unlicensed times to be used from time trials, however this is down to the discretion of the gala organiser.

Most of the galas we attend as a club are level 3 galas these include Wigan Starter meet, BCM Greater Manchester Galas, Blackpool Lights, Blackpool Rocks, Percy Mason Gala, and Salford Potential Olympians gala.

The times achieved in these galas can be used at the Lancashire County Championships and North West Regional Championships depending on the entry requirements.

Level 2 Gala

These galas are held in short course pools (25m) only. These competitions have qualifying times and no unlicensed are allowed.

The times achieved in these galas can be used at the Lancashire County Championships, North West Regional Championships and National Championships depending on entry requirements for these galas.

The one example of a level 2 gala that the club attends at the moment is the Wigan Best Future Stars gala which normally runs around October/ November time.

Level 1 Galas

These galas are swam in long course pools (50m). These competitions have qualifying times and the times achieved in these galas can be used in Regional and National galas depending on the requirements of individual galas.

Examples of level 1 Galas include the Lancashire County Championships, North West Summer Regionals and Summer National championships.

Hopefully that gives a little insight into the level system for galas.

Another question that is asked alot is what are Counties?

The Lancashire County Championships take place once a year. This is normally over 3 weekends which are the last two in January and the first weekend in February. They normally take place at both the Manchester Aquatics Centre and the Wavertree Aquatics Centre both of which are 50m pools.

The County Championships are classed as a Level 1 competition.

To swim at this competition swimmers need to have met the qualifying times  which are set each year and they need to have been achieved within a set time frame. At the moment these times need to have been achieved at a gala licensed either Level 1,2,3,4.

Also to enter this gala your club needs to be affiliated with the Lancashire Swimming Association and no swimmer can compete if they have already taken part in another County’s Championships in that calender year.

The County Championships have Heats and Finals for all 50m and 100m races. This means all swimmers will race once in the heats like a normal gala then generally the top 8 will race again in the final to try and win medals and improve times. The 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m are swam in heats like most level 3 galas with the top 3 in each age group winning medals.

The County Championships is the first step up into a more competitive environment for swimmers.

I hope that this will have helped even if just a little bit. I am sure it has probably given some people more questions to ask! As always if you have a question please email meets@wiganswimmingclub.org.uk