The Final Team Champs is this Weekend

The Last Team Champs

This weekend marks the end of an era for Ontario Championship racing as it will be the last time Swim Ontario plays a major role in Team Champs competition. In the most recent competition changes Team Champs was one of two competitions that will no longer be hosted by Swim Ontario. The second competition hitting the chopping block is the winter version of Ontario Age Group Championships in short course meters.

Reading social media posts and comments many people appear upset and even frustrated with the decision by Swim Ontario not continuing to support Team Champs. I personally have mixed feelings on the news.

As a swimmer that attended several Team Champs meets I see the pros and cons to this debatable swim meet being ran. Sure I see and understand the argument of this meet being a “team” meet. However, one does need to wonder why caps for each division have always been in place. Think about it for a moment, lets send 30, 40, or 50 swimmers to “Team Champs…” Problem number 1, many clubs have more swimmers on the roster then the three divisions allow, resulting in swimmers being left off this so called “team” meet. The endless amounts of drama parents and even swimmers will throw when they don’t make the team. I have always viewed any sort of “team” meet being open to the entire “team” not just the best 30 + swimmers who can score points in hopes of winning a banner.

I do however think Team Champs did bring the so called “team” together, cheering swimmers on, swimming their hearts out, and moving up in the rankings. This is great and all, but shouldn’t these things be taking place in every competition a swimmer is competing in? I certainly think so.

Swim Ontario is doing the correct thing allowing a similar format of Team Champs to continue. The meet will be sanctioned and ran similar to Team Champs has in the passed. It just wont have the glitz and glam of Swim Ontario medals and banners… But, lets think again are those Swim Ontario medals and banners really important?

Having this door of the traditional Team Champs closing will allow a new fresh start towards a better “team” meet. It opens many opportunities for a host club to realize, yes we want to host a Division 2 like Team Champs but not have a cap on the number of swimmers entering the meet. Or yes we will run a similar Team Champs meet entirely in Long Course meters instead of the current Short Course prelims and Long Course finals.

As much as its emotional for some seeing Team Champs end I think we all need to think about the important questions raised in this post and try and understand all the sides of this story. We need to re think the true meaning of “team” as it has been altered by this competition that ultimately splits a “team” in two.

Below is the link page to follow Team Champs. I, nor my team (WRMS) is competing in this competition as it does not reflect the true meaning of team.

http://www.swimontario.com/page.php?id=1846