1. Stroke/turn judge Clinic
Wisconsin Swimming
Officials Committee
Rev. Oct 2013

2. Overview Welcome/Introductions/Purpose General Guidelines
Lead/Lag Protocol
Strokes
Butterfly
Backstroke
Breaststroke
Freestyle IM
Relays

3. Overview Relay Take-off Judging Place Judging Chief Judge
Head Chief Judge
Other points
What’s Next

4. Welcome Introductions Paperwork Name Club Motivation Background Check
Registrations
Release of Contact Info
Manuals/Rule Books/Readings/DVD

5. General Guidelines Purpose of Officiating Be Competent
To insure fair competition among all swimmers by assuring compliance with the rules for competitive swimming and to treat each swimmer equally under those rules.
Be Competent
Know the rules. Ask for clarifications.
Review rules and officiate often (nothing trumps deck time)
Be professional
Looking like you know what you are doing makes people think you know what you’re doing

6. General Guidelines Meet Officials Levels of Certification Meet Referee
Administrative Official
Administrative Referee
Head Chief Judge
Deck Referee
Starter
Stroke/Turn Officials
Levels of Certification
N1 – LSC Certification
N2 – Evaluation required
N3 – Initial and final evaluations required

7. General Guidelines Jurisdictions “Assigned area of responsibility”
Determined by the Meet Referee in conformance with USA Swimming guidelines.
Stroke Judge: Generally wall-to-wall (may be different as assigned by the Referee or Head Chief Judge)
Turn End Judge: Last arm pull-to-first stroke (may be given flag-in stroke duties as assigned by the Referee or Head Chief Judge)

8. General Guidelines Jurisdictions
Start End/Finish Judge: From the start until swimmer surfaces, and last stroke into the finish
Relay Take-off Judge: Relay take-offs only for assigned lanes
Do not attempt to officiate outside of your jurisdiction

9. General Guidelines When a Violation Occurs
Immediately raises one hand overhead, palm open
Required by the rules
Do your thinking AFTER this signal
EXCEPTION: Relay exchanges; after last swimmer of the heat leaves
Record the infraction
On the heat sheet (if supplied one)
On the DQ slip (if writing own DQs)
Event, heat, lane, name/team, and infraction(s)
Sign the slip
Report the infraction to the referee
Over the radio
Through the Chief Judge

10. General Guidelines Be prepared to answer three questions:
Where were you?
Be in the correct position to make the call
Head over the water or straight down the wall for turns
At or just behind the swimmers hips for strokes
What did you see?
Be able to describe what you saw (without using motions)
Which hand touched first?
When did the swimmer submerge before the finish?
What rule was broken?
Know the rules (not by number)
Use rule book language
Refer all questions from the coaches to the Deck or Meet Referee

11. General Guidelines
Do not be offended if the Referee or Chief Judge over-rules your call
If you think you saw an infraction; you didn’t
You need to know you saw an infraction and what rule it violated
Ugly swimming is not necessarily illegal
The swimmer always gets the benefit of the doubt
We are casual observers of the meet, noting infractions of the rules
We are not looking for infractions

12. General Guidelines Be aware of deck balance
Mirror the deck
Watch all assigned lanes all of the time
Even when no swimmer is swimming
Turn officials position
Over the lane
As assigned by the Meet Referee/Head Chief Judge
Stroke official position
Behind hips of slowest assigned swimmer
Except Freestyle: Stationed at 15m mark
Whistle Protocol

13. Lead/Lag Protocol Paired with another stroke official
Never closer than six feet
Break swimmers into two groups
Take the group closest to your wall
Never go past your opposite flags
Never cross your partner

14. 5-minute Break

15. Technical Rules

16. Butterfly Start The forward start shall be used.
“An entry made while facing the course”
Platform: At least one foot in the forward half of the block
Deck: At least one foot at the edge of the deck
Pool: At least one hand on the wall
Swimmer must be certified by his/her coach to start from the blocks

17. Butterfly Stroke
After the start and after each turn, the swimmer’s shoulders must be at or past the vertical toward the breast.
The swimmer is permitted one or more leg kicks, but only one arm pull under water, which must bring the swimmer to the surface.
It shall be permissible for a swimmer to be completely submerged for a distance of not more than 15 meters (16.4 yards) after the start and after each turn.
By that point, the head must have broken the surface.

18. Butterfly Stroke
The swimmer must remain on the surface until the next turn or finish.
From the beginning of the first arm pull, the body shall be kept on the breast.
Both arms must be brought forward over the water and pulled back simultaneously.
The entire length of the arm must break the placid surface of the water
Arm: Wrist to shoulder

19. Butterfly Kick
All up and down movements of the legs and feet must be simultaneous.
The position of the legs or the feet need not be on the same level, but they shall not alternate in relation to each other.
A scissors or breaststroke kicking movement is not permitted.

20. Butterfly Turns At each turn the body shall be on the breast.
The touch shall be made with both hands separated and simultaneously at, above, or below the water surface.
Need not be in the same plane
Once a touch has been made, the swimmer may turn in any manner desired.
The shoulders must be at or past the vertical toward the breast when the swimmer leaves the wall.
Watch the feet leave the wall, then check shoulders for body orientation

21. Butterfly Finish
At the finish, the body shall be on the breast and the touch shall be made with both hands simultaneously at, above, or below the water surface.
Hands need not be in the same plane

22. DVD of Butterfly Stroke

23. Backstroke Start
The swimmers shall line up in the water facing the starting end, with both hands placed on the gutter or on the starting grips.
Standing in or on the gutter, placing the toes above the lip of the gutter, or bending the toes over the lip of the gutter, before or after the start, is prohibited.

24. Backstroke Stroke
The swimmer shall push off on his back and continue swimming on the back throughout the race.
Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except it is permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn, and for a distance of not more than 15 meters (16.4 yards) after the start and after each turn.
By that point, the head must have broken the surface of the water.

25. Backstroke Turns
Upon completion of each length, some part of the swimmer must touch the wall.
During the turn the shoulders may be turned past the vertical toward the breast after which an immediate continuous single arm pull or an immediate continuous simultaneous double arm pull may be used to initiate the turn.
The swimmer must have returned to a position on the back upon leaving the wall.
Watch the feet leave the wall, then check shoulders for body orientation

26. Backstroke Finish
Upon the finish of the race, the swimmer must touch the wall while on the back.
“The moment of touching the end of the course.”

27. DVD of Backstroke Stroke

28. Breaststroke Start
The forward start shall be used.

29. Breaststroke Stroke
After the start and after each turn when the swimmer leaves the wall, the body shall be kept on the breast.
It is not permitted to roll onto the back at any time.
Throughout the race the stroke cycle must be one arm stroke and one leg kick in that order.
All movements of the arms shall be simultaneous and in the same horizontal plane without alternating movement.

30. Breaststroke Stroke
The hands shall be pushed forward together from the breast on, under, or over the water.
The elbows shall be under water except for the final stroke before the turn, during the turn and for the final stroke at the finish.
The hands shall be brought back on or under the surface of the water.
The hands shall not be brought back beyond the hip line, except during the first stroke after the start and each turn.

31. Breaststroke Stroke
During each complete cycle, some part of the swimmer’s head shall break the surface of the water.
After the start and after each turn, the swimmer may take one arm stroke completely back to the legs.
The head must break the surface of the water before the hands turn inward at the widest part of the second stroke.

32. Breaststroke Kick
After the start and each turn, a single butterfly kick, which must be followed by a breaststroke kick, is permitted during or at the completion of the first arm pull.
First arm pull begins with observable separation of the hands
A pause after the separation of the hands is not a violation
Following which, all movements of the legs shall be simultaneous and in the same horizontal plane without alternating movement.
The feet must be turned outwards during the propulsive part of the kick.

33. Breaststroke Kick
A scissors, flutter or butterfly kick is not permitted except as provided herein.
Breaking the surface of the water with the feet is allowed unless followed by a butterfly kick.

34. Breaststroke Turns & Finish
At each turn and at the finish of the race, the touch shall be made with both hands simultaneously at, above, or below the water level.
Need not be in the same plane
The head may be submerged after the last arm pull prior to the touch, provided it breaks the surface of the water at some point during the last complete or incomplete cycle preceding the touch

35. DVD of Breaststroke Stroke

36. Freestyle Start
The forward start shall be used.

37. Freestyle Stroke
In an event designated freestyle, the swimmer may swim any style, except that in a medley relay or an individual medley event, freestyle means any style other than butterfly, breaststroke or backstroke.
Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except it shall be permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn and for a distance of not more than 15 meters (16.4 yards) after the start and each turn.
By that point the head must have broken the surface.

38. Freestyle Turns
Upon completion of each length the swimmer must touch the wall.

39. Freestyle Finish
The swimmer shall have finished the race when any part of his person touches the wall after completing the prescribed distance.

40. DVD of Freestyle Stroke

41. Individual Medley (IM)
The swimmer shall swim the prescribed distance in the following order: the first one-fourth, butterfly; the second one-fourth, backstroke; the third one-fourth, breaststroke; and the last one-fourth, freestyle.
Forward start
Strokes are according to individual stroke rules
Turns
Within a stroke treated as a turn for that stroke
Transitioning between strokes treated as the finish of the first stroke
Finish at end of distance

42. Relays
Four swimmers
Each swimmer swims one-fourth of the prescribed distance
Each stroke is swum according to the rules of the stroke
In relay races a swimmer other than the first swimmer shall not start until his/her teammate has concluded his/her leg
“Start” means leaving the blocks/wall
Each relay team member shall leave the water immediately upon finishing his/her leg, except the last member

43. DVD finish

44. 5-minute Break

45. Relay Take-off Judge Relay take-off Cover assigned lanes with partner
Watch waiting swimmer until leaves wall/blocks
Look for touch of incoming swimmer
Notate the take-off (DO NOT raise hand)
Do not confer with partner until all assigned exchanges are complete
“I have a potential early take-off”
Partner will answer with their early take-offs (if any)
Dual confirmation results in a DQ

46. Place Judge Place Judge Position on side of the pool Cover all lanes
Note as many as you can
Record a tie if indistinguishable
Results used to resolve timing discrepencies

47. Chief Judge Act as mentor to other judges Verifies all deck calls
“What did you see?”
“What rule was violated?”
“What is your jurisdiction?”
“Where were you?”
Recommend judgment to referee
Communicates between deck judges and:
Referee
Announcer
Swimmers

48. Head Chief Judge Communicate with all deck officials before meet
Assign positions
Conduct the official’s briefing
Manage officials’ equipment
Radios
Clipboards
Paperwork
Complete DQ slips

49. Other Points - General Rule Violations
Unsportsmanlike conduct ( )
Using objects for propulsion
Lane dividers (ropes) ( )
Bottom of pool (during freestyle, swimmer may stand) ( )
Fins, etc. ( )
Interference ( and )
Not completing the distance prescribed
Using watches or timing/pacing devices

50. Other Points - Suit Rules
We are not the swimsuit police
General specs
Men: Navel to knee
Women: Collarbone to knee
One suit only
“Modesty” garment
Exceptions must come from USA-S national chairman
Report infractions to the referee

51. Other Points - Performance
Attend and participate in all meet-related meetings assigned
Uniform (general; may be different per meet):
Plain white polo-style shirt
Plain shorts/slacks/skirts
Navy blue (USA-S/YMCA/NCAA)
White (WIAA)
White socks
White rubber-soled shoes (not Crocs or similar)
Control your emotions
Admit and correct your mistakes

52. Other Points - Equipment
Buy multiple shirts/bottoms
Bring extra socks (you will get wet)
Radios
Any walkie-talkie style with multiple channels
Target
Scheels
Good headset
NOT for use with cell phones
Many styles
Scheels hunting
Some teams provide radios; don’t count on it

53. Other Points - Attitude
Swimming is merely a sport; it is not life-and death
Take officiating seriously
You are in a position of authority: Act like it
And remember, the benefit of the doubt always goes to the swimmer

54. What’s Next Complete Level 2 Background Check (every two years)
Complete On-line Athlete Protection Course (annually)
USA-S Membership
Take on-line tests for Stroke & Turn Judge
Apprentice
4 sessions (2 or more meets; 2 or more mentors—signed card)
Establish relationships with other Officials
Especially “Lead” officials
Volunteer often everywhere
Re-cert
USA-S Non-Athlete Membership and APT - Every Year
USA-S Official: Refresher clinic or online re-cert test – Prior to the beginning of every even-numbered year
YMCA Official: Every three years

55. On behalf of Wisconsin Swimming, its swimmers, and the Officials Committee: THANK YOU!!!