University Swimming

Hello TEAM,

Tonight I hosted a quick chat about Varsity Swimming. We discussed what University swimming in Canada is, the levels of competition and what different programs look like. We were lucky enough to have Ashley Riddall (Wilfrid Laurier), Brett Russell (Acadia) and Matthew Jackson (Guelph), all alumni swimmers of mine/HHBF, to join the discussion and share their unique University experiences. Below are the notes of the meeting - just in case you were unable to attend or wanted to review the info...

USports is the top meet, the national championships for University Swimming and there are new updated time standards every year for this event (and they're FAST!). 2025 USports Swimming is taking place March 6-8th and being hosted by the University of Toronto. CBC will be providing a link to live stream the event, if you ae interested I encourage you to tune in, you will be impressed! Below USports there are 4 Conferences throughout Canada; AUS, RSEQ, OUA and Canada West. These meets is where the University gets to select and build their TEAM to represent the school. As our guests all mentioned their Conference championships was one of the best, most fun meets they've ever attended, as you are not just swimming for best times but you are racing to earn points for your TEAM. Below Conference competitions there are Divisional's and Duel meets etc, which all provide a chance for athletes to hit their qualifying times and for coaches to see strengths and weaknesses of their TEAM. 

In regards to programs, most TEAMS will have a recruitment package along with time standards that the coach is looking for. These times will usually be accompanied with scholarship times, and the package will have lots of information about the TEAM, the school, training hours etc. As our guests all mentioned its a good idea to have a school in mind, contact them early and attend a recruitment camp hosted by the University TEAM, so you can see the training facilities, meet the captains and coaches, and overall get a feel for what your next 4-5 years will look like. Any LASERS athlete interested in a school please connect with me and I will reach out to the University coach and get some info for you ASAP.

Finally as we mentioned on the call, if anyone has ANY questions for me, Ashley, Brett or Matt (I also have hook ups with many other University programs that we can reach out to) please connect with me and we can all help you start the planning process of swimming at University!!! #NextLevel #TrustTheProcess 

-Coach Chris

#OutTrainThem