Hello SWIVE!

We had a wonderful morning at swim practice! The water was warm and steamy.

I am so thankful to GSSC for allowing us to use the pool.

So, yesterday we got an update from the WIAA. I am sending you the information to review.

What does this mean? Well, for me, it means we might be able to have a swim meet but that all depends on if it is worth it during this short period and also who we might be able to compete against and will the competition count against our regular meet count. (We have a limit of how many meets we can do). I am thinking of Kennedy Catholic since we practice at the same pool and already have the pool reserved.

The captains and coaches have a meeting planned on Monday to discuss how we would like to proceed as a team but I like to keep everyone informed and also let you know that I am aware of the update.

Sincerely,

Coach Loy

New Guidelines Issued for Return to Athletics and Activities RENTON, Wash. (Oct. 6, 2020) - The Governor’s Office and Washington State Department of Health issued new guidance for returning to education-based sports and activities, Tuesday, using the statistical benchmarks of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents in a given county as well as the percentage of positive tests. The WIAA has used this guidance from the Department of Health to develop new general, as well as sport-specific, return-to-play guidelines which will replace those previously tied to phasing in the Governor’s Safe Start Plan. The Governor’s office has informed the WIAA that these guidelines must be followed and neither schools nor community sports programs have the authority to implement more lenient policies. VIEW COMPLETE UPDATED GENERAL AND SPORT SPECIFIC GUIDELINES These revised guidelines give greater flexibility to school administrators to offer education-based athletics and activities and meet the demand of their students and communities. The WIAA Executive Board and staff are pleased with the work that has been done to allow students to be more involved with their schools, as participation in the school setting provides safer and more equitable opportunities for students, especially during this time. Staff will continue to work with decision-makers to evaluate participation in sports deemed high-risk by reviewing all data and documentation available in hopes it may be appropriate to qualify them as moderate risk. County benchmarks will be used to determine which sports or activities are recommended to take place based on COVID-19 activity in the county. Each county’s status can be found on the Washington Risk Assessment Dashboard along with communicating directly with local health departments. These benchmarks mirror those issued by the Department of Health to aid schools in their decision-making process for models of in-person/remote learning. The three tiers indicate low, moderate or high risk and allow for varying levels of participation: HIGH >75 cases/100K/14 days OR >5% positivity Team practices and/or training can resume for low, medium, and high-risk sports if players are limited to groups of six in separate parts of the field/court and separated by a buffer zone. Brief, close contact (e.g. 3-on-3 drills) is permitted. It is preferable for the groups of six to be stable over time. Attendance rosters should include group contact information. Each league, organization, or club must publish and follow a “return to play” safety plan. Any practice or training activities that can be done outdoors should be done outdoors. Scrimmage, intra-team competitions, and league games or competition allowed for low-risk sports, but are discouraged if the school is not conducting some in-person learning. No tournaments allowed. No spectators allowed except for one parent/guardian/caregiver for each student-participant in uniform. Spectators must maintain a physical distance of at least six (6) feet between each person. MODERATE >25-75 cases/100K/14 days AND <5% positivity Scrimmage, intra-team competitions, and league games allowed for both low and moderate-risk sporting activities. Scrimmage, intra-team competitions allowed for high-risk sporting activities. No tournaments allowed. No spectators allowed except for one adult parent/guardian/caregiver for each student-participant in uniform. Spectators must maintain physical distance of at least six (6) feet between each person. LOW <25 cases/100K/14 days AND <5% positivity Scrimmage, intra-team competitions, and league games allowed for low, moderate, and high-risk sporting activities. Tournaments allowed. Spectators to follow gathering size limit of the Safe Start Plan. A prohibition on tournaments for sporting activities does not include postseason, playoff, regional or state championship competitions sanctioned by a statewide interscholastic activities administrative and rule-making body that oversees competition in all counties in the state. Each WIAA sport is classified into low, moderate and high risk categories as follows: LOW-RISK SPORTING ACTIVITIES: Cross Country Golf Sideline/no-contact cheerleading and dance Swimming and Diving Tennis Track and Field MODERATE-RISK SPORTING ACTIVITIES: Baseball Bowling Gymnastics Soccer Softball Volleyball HIGH-RISK SPORTING ACTIVITIES: Basketball Cheerleading with contact Dance with contact Football Wrestling The complete guidelines will be updated as any changes are made and will be available at wiaa.com/covid. VIEW COMPLETE GUIDELINES About WIAA Founded in 1905, the WIAA is a membership organization of over 800 middle level and high schools from every corner of the state with the goal of making memories through education-based activities. The WIAA supports and sponsors 23 sports along with five activities that incorporate over 500,000 student participants. The WIAA and its member schools believe in the value of extra-curricular activities have been linked to better standardized test scores, increased school attendance, improved physical and mental health, and a more positive student experience.

NFHS RETURN TO COMPETITION RECOMMENDATIONS

• Considerations for Officials, Coaches, Other Personnel

• Schools should have umpires’ information in order to track contacts (may be accessible through Arbiter.)
• A separate bathroom should be provided for the umpire when possible.
• Umpires are recommended to bring their own food and water.
• Umpires must be spaced 3-6 feet apart.
• Umpires will not be expected to monitor the physical distancing; each person is responsible.

SWIMMING & DIVING GUIDELINES

WIAA STAFF LEAD: Andy Barnes

SPORT-BY-SPORT SEASON DATES (Published 10/6/2020)

Considering all recommendations by the NFHS, WIAA rules and regulations, and the SMAC guidelines, the following are the specific guidelines for Swimming & Diving. For general guidelines, please refer to the information above.

Swimming & Diving has been identified as a LOW RISK sport. Competitions may begin in HIGH TRANSMISSION.

NFHS RETURN TO COMPETITION RECOMMENDATIONS

• Considerations for Judges, Coaches, Other Personnel

• A separate bathroom should be provided for officials when possible.
• Officials are recommended to bring their own food and water.
• Officials must be spaced 3-6 feet apart.
• Officials will not be expected to monitor the physical distancing; each person is responsible.
• Cleaning supplies should be available on site with devices sanitized between uses.
• Announcer’s/Scorer’s table – Announcers/Scorekeepers should be 3-6 feet apart when possible; each should have their own computer.
• Officials should bring their writing utensils to fill out any necessary paperwork.

• NFHS Swimming and Diving Rule Considerations:

• Conduct (1-3-2)

• Require athletes to arrive at a venue already in competitive attire or provide alternative accommodations for swimmers and divers to change that allows for 6 feet of social distancing.

• Lap Counting (2-7-6, 3-4)

• Only one person per lane should be permitted at turning end. Provide hand sanitizer and require lap counters to clean hands and wipe down devices.

• Pre-Meet Conference (3-3-6, 4-2-1d)

• Decrease number of participants or hold one conference with coaches and one meeting with captains. The referee can use P.A. system or starting system microphone to allow participants to hear but keep them properly separated.

• Referee and Starter (4-2, 4-3)

• Various rules require interactions between officials, coaches and athletes. Alternative methods for communications include utilization of the P.A. system, hand signals or written communication.

• Notification of Disqualification (4-2-2d, e)

• Notification shall occur from a distance via use of hand signals or the P.A. system.

• Meet Officials (4-8, 4-10, 4-11, 4-12, 4-13)

• Officials responsible for information processing are often located together at a desk/table adjacent to the competition course or in an office/remote location. Develop alternative methods for submitting entries (3-2) and movement of non-electronic information. Require a distance of 3-6 feet between individuals seated at the desk/table.

• Timers (4-9)

• Timers must assemble at the finish of each race, at the edge of the pool within the 6-8 feet confines of the lane which they are timing. Timers should wear cloth facial coverings.

• Submission of Entries to Referee (5-2)

• Alternative forms of entry submission can be designed to reduce face-to-face interaction when submitting a proper entry, where/how/to whom entries are submitted, and a reduction or elimination of certain penalties currently attached to improper entries.

• Relay Takeoff Judges and Relays (8-3)

• Require all takeoff judging from the sides of the pool. Space relay swimmers apart from one another. Timers and relay takeoff judges should wear cloth facial coverings.

• Diving Officials (9-6)

• Alternative methods for submitting entries (3-2) and movement of non-electronic information will be required. Recommendations include a distance of 3-6 feet between individuals seated at the desk/table. Create a 3-6 feet space between judges by spacing groups of judges on opposite sides of boards or on one side of the board on a multi-level platform.

• Swimming Warm-up Areas

• Establish multiple sessions for warm-up periods to limit number of swimmers per lane. Restrict the number of swimmers in competition area. Limit number of swimmers per lane during warm-up and warm-down periods.

• Diving Warm-up Areas

• Limit number of divers during warm-up by creating multiple sessions. During competition, divers may not approach the board until their turn to compete. Hot tubs should not be permitted. Dive order sheets should be posted in multiple areas to reduce number of divers viewing at the same time.

• Teams Seating and Lane Placement

• Keep the teams on opposite sides of the pool and require the home team to compete in lanes 1-3 and visitors to swim in lanes 4-6.

• Preparing Athletes for Competition

• Athlete clerking areas should be eliminated