The 2019 National Open Water Camp will be held August 13-18 in Pleasant Prairie, WI in conjunction with the 2019 UANA Junior Open Water Swimming Championships.

Selection:

Selection will take place immediately following the USA Swimming 2019 National Open Water Championships. USA Swimming will fund only the athletes who meet the selection criteria below. Others may enter the meet, but will do so independently. USA Swimming can enter an unlimited number of swimmers in each event, but only two per federation can score.

Selection will be done in the order below:

12 male and 12 female athletes selected (or 12 athletes from each gender).

• The top two available male and the top two available female finishers who are 20 & under as of December 31, 2019 will be selected off of the results of the 2019 10K National Open Water Championships;
• Then, the top two available male and the top two available female finishers who are 20 & under as of December 31, 2019 will be selected off of the results of the 2019 5K National Open Water Championships;
• Then, the top two available male and the top two available female finishers who are 14-17 as of December 31, 2019 will be selected off of the results of the 2019 Junior 5K National Open Water Championships;
• Lastly, six male and six female athletes who are 20 & under as of December 31, 2019 will be selected off of the top 2018 times in the SWIMS database based on USA Swimming Power Points in the 1500 LCM freestyle.

Other Criteria:

• Only Long Courses times are considered;
• Qualification timeframe (for pool selection): January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018;
• Athletes must be currently registered with USA Swimming;
• Athletes must be US citizens & have not represented any other FINA Federation at international competition;
• Athletes who have previously attended a National Open Water Select Camp or National Team/National Junior Team Open Water Camp are not eligible for camp;
• Athletes who have represented USA Swimming internationally in an Open Water competition are not eligible for camp;
• An athlete who turns down the opportunity to attend camp would be eligible the following year if he/she still meets the criteria. An athlete who accepts the invitation and does not attend is not eligible the following year unless an alternate was able to attend in his/her place.

Location:

The camp will be held at the RecPlex/Lake Andrea in Pleasant Prairie, WI.

Dates:

The 2019 camp dates are August 13-18, 2019 in conjunction with the 2019 UANA Junior Open Water Swimming Championships. This year's camp will focus on the skills & strategies with a focus on preparing for the UANA races. Athletes will learn strategies, OW technique, nutrition and recovery for open water, and much, much more from elite Open Water coaches.

Athlete Cost:

USA Swimming will cover all costs related to camp for athletes including airfare/mileage, lodging, meals, race entry and other required camp costs. 

Home Coaches:

Home coaches are invited to attend the camp with their athletes. USA Swimming will offer a $200 travel reimbursement to coaches who choose to attend and cover all lodging, meals and other required camp costs. Home coaches are funded to stay through the camp August 13-15 and are invited to stay through the UANA meet August 16-18, but will be responsible for lodging costs during the event. Home coaches will follow the same track as the athlete and are there for an educational experience.

Staff:

USA Swimming will select the staff for each camp. At least one male and one female assistant must be on the staff. In addition, one National Open Water Team athlete will attend the camp and at least one member of the USA Swimming National Headquarters staff will attend to assist with educational sessions. The staff will be announced when the team is set, however, appointment is contingent upon passing all required background & pre-employment screens.

Camp Schedule:

The 2019 Camp will include pool workouts, open water lake sessions, educational sessions and varying open water races. Athletes and staff are required to stay the entire time and must stay onsite in the accommodations provided by the host. Tentative itinerary coming soon.

For more information please email Morgan Weinberg at mweinberg@usaswimming.org.