USA Swimming’s Age Group Development (AGD) Committee continues to advocate for reasonable family time commitments. This can be achieved by focusing on the fun side of swimming, while allowing athletes to engage in other outside activities, including other sports*.

Season Dates

Per Rule 205.11.2, the developmental season shall be defined by three 10-week seasons, with dates defined by the AGD Committee no later than February 15 annually. Local Swimming Committees (LSCs) may pick any 10-week window within the seasons below and the larger time frames allow flexibility when selecting their specific dates. Seasons are as follows:

• April 16-August 15, 2023
•  August 16-December 31, 2023
• January 1-April 15, 2024

Per Rule 205.11.3, athletes shall be limited to participating in four developmental competitions per season. Competitions may operate as multi-day or multi-session meets and should be planned to keep events within two hours in length. Athletes shall only participate in one session per sanctioned competition. LSCs may offer developmental competitions but it is not required.

Recommended Developmental Competition Categories

Developmental Competition Categories, created and managed by the AGD Committee, are geared towards entry-level athletes and their families. First developed on May 1, 2022, the goal is to provide a fun, efficient and positive experience for new and existing families in the sport. These categories are based on events listed in Rule 102.1.3 of the USA Swimming Rulebook and limited to athletes ages 12 years old and younger.

To help clubs best structure meets within the boundaries of these rules, the AGD Committee has developed a new resource titled Developmental Competition Categories. This resource, which is currently located on the Marketing Toolkit website, provides helpful recommendations for clubs hosting future events for their newest athletes. It identifies developmentally appropriate events and different ways to use them throughout your season. To access, please click here.

For further information, please reach out to AGD Committee Chair, Liz Kershaw (coachlizkershaw@gmail.com).

*To learn more on the benefits of a multi-sport approach, please review the American Development Model.