Our Pools:

AOP (Iroquois) - Anne Ottenbrite Pool at Iroquois Park Sport Centre, 500 Victoria Street W, Whitby, ON

TPASC - Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre, 875 Morningside Ave, Toronto, ON

Markham Pan Am - Markham Pan Am Centre, 16 Main Street, Unionville (Markham), ON

TP - Training Pool at TPASC

CP - Competition Pool at TPASC

Deck - the area around the pool

Lane Rope - the dividers between lanes that reduce waves

Meets and Training:

Long-course - 50-metre pool

Short-course - 25-metre pool

Scratch/Decline - to not participate in a meet or in a single day/session of a meet

Heat sheets - the program/schedule of events at a meet which tells swimmers when they swim and in which lane, and also includes their personal best time for that race

Heat - a group of swimmers swimming a race at the same time (often multiple heats for each swimming event)

NT - no time, a swimmer’s entry time is listed as “NT” when they don’t have an official time recorded for that event.

DQ - disqualification, when a swimmer breaks a rule (e.g., wrong stroke, missed touch)

Prelims - preliminaries, the first round of races in a championship-style meet

Finals - the championship round of a swimming event, following prelims

Official - a judge on the pool deck during competition

Touchpad - a pressure-sensitive plate located at each end of the pool in competition lanes

False Start - leaving the block before the start signal

Anchor - the last swimmer in a relay

PB - personal best, a swimmers fastest time ever

Heat Winner - fastest swimmer in a particular heat (not necessarily overall)

Training:

Taper - a period before a big meet when training volume decreases so swimmers are rested

S&C - strength and conditioning

Drill - a focused exercise to improve stroke technique

Set - a group of repetitions in practice

Pace - the speed you aim to hold throughout a race

Interval - the time allotted to complete a repetition and rest before the next one

Starts and Turns:

Block - the platform swimmers dive from at the start of a race

Backstroke Ledges - a starting aid used in backstroke events to help swimmers get a stronger and more stable start

Track Start - the diving entry into the water at the beginning of most races (except backstroke)

Flip Turn - a somersault turn used in freestyle and backstroke to reverse direction

Streamline - the tight, straight body position used after a dive or push-off to reduce drag

Equipment:

Paddles - flat plates that swimmers wear on their hands, used to increase resistance in the water during practice drills

Fins - flippers worn on the feet, used to move faster through the water, reinforcing proper kick technique

Snorkel - centre-mounted breathing tube allowing swimmers to breathe without turning their head

Kick-board - a buoyant foam board held in front of the body during kicking drills

Mesh Bag - a breathable, mesh fabric bag used to carry and store swim gear

Pull-Buoy - a foam flotation device placed between the legs to isolates the upper body so swimmers can focus on their pulling technique and arm strength