Swim Ireland Coronavirus (Covid-19) Update No. 4

Updated – 25th March 2020

Closure of Competitive Season

The following update provides Swim Ireland clubs further direction and guidance in relation to the Swim Ireland National and Regional Competitive Season and training considering recent communication from the Irish and UK Governments and the International Olympic Committee regarding Covid-19.

National and Regional Competitive Season – Swimming, Diving, Water Polo

Swim Ireland announces today that all Regional and National competitions originally scheduled to take place between now and the end of this season (August 2020) will no longer take place. This decision has not been taken lightly and follows the most recent decrees of both the Irish and UK governments.

We felt that it was important at this time to reassure our athletes and all of those who work with and for them that there is no urgent need during these difficult times to be back in a swimming pool to prepare for a Regional or National competition. For those of our members, for whom the pinnacle of your swimming season was to compete in their Regional Championships, the Irish Open Championships, Irish Summer National Championships or the Irish National Division 2 Competition, we understand that this news is likely to be disappointing. However we were concerned that there might be a level of stress and anxiety related to competitions still on the horizon, whilst the opportunity to train in the pool was not available and we felt that it was important to give you clarity on the matter to allow any such worries to end.

Club Competitive Activities

As the health and welfare of our members is of paramount importance, Swim Ireland directs all clubs to cancel all galas and competitions for the rest of the 2019/20 Season.

Physical meetings and any social or fundraising activities should also be on hold based on current government advices.

Club Training

Swim Ireland’s strongest possible advice regarding training is to continue with the cessation of all pool-based sessions and sessions in facilities such as gyms, sports halls, etc. until further notice. This includes those who were training for a July 2020 Olympic Games, including the athletes in our National Centres. We urge you to cease training with immediate effect. This direction will be reviewed on a regular basis.

We encourage our members to stay fit and active, within government and HSE/Public Health guidelines and we will work each and every week on providing you with the means and method of doing this, so when the time is right to jump back into you pool, you are in a good place to resume your training and preparation for a new season ahead.

Swim Ireland will of course continue to act in all other ways on behalf of their members and their clubs through our Membership team, Education Department, Youth Development team and Participation Department. We will liaise with the experts within our Performance team to provide you with the best possible information that we can and we feel that we have already started to do this with you over the most recent weeks. And your input is important too! If you have something that you want to share, that helps keep us bonded as an aquatics community and wider family that we know we are, then send that through to us and we will share and engage with you as much as we possibly can.

If clubs have queries or concerns, please contact your Club Support Officer who will be able to provide you with assistance.

We continue to monitor the situation very carefully and will issue further advice to our clubs and members as this become available. Please continue to regularly check the Swim Ireland website for further updates and contact Swim Ireland if you have any urgent questions or concerns.

Click Here to read the full update including the list of National & International events postponed or cancelled

Swim Ireland’s #WePlay Inspiring Girls in Sport Conference enters its fourth year in 2020 and in practicing what we have learnt from our #WePlay Speakers in facing adversity, we have adapted to make this year an online series! We are delighted to announce Kinetica as #WePlay 2020 sponsors, with Sport Ireland continuing their support also through the Women in Sport Initiative.

Insightful, inspiring & motivating video’s will be released every Wednesday and Friday across Swim Ireland’s Social media channels, starting April 22nd! Videos will include athlete panel discussions and educational pieces for athletes, coaches, parents and supporters of any age from all sports.

Ireland’s elite athletes from a wide range of sports including Ellen Keane, Phil Healy, Leona Maguire, Sanita Puspure, Katie Mullen, Darragh Greene, Rhys McClenaghan and many more will come together, whilst apart, to share their experiences and advice from their sporting journey so far, including how they are keeping healthy and active during this difficult time. We will also hear from experts such as Sport Ireland Institute’s Head of Performance Nutrition Sharon Madigan.

After each episode of #WePlay Online, YOU have the opportunity to pick the brains of Ireland’s sporting elite! Post your question under our Wednesday video releases and the athletes will answer through a Q&A session every Friday! If you don’t fancy posting publicly, email your question to bethanycarson@swimireland.ie

Speaking about the launch Head of Communications at Swim Ireland Trish Mayon said ‘Thanks to the support of Kinetica and Sport Ireland we are delighted to be delivering the #WePlay stage straight to a screen in your home! The conference has had great engagement in the past and we were keen to deliver in 2020, despite the difficulties we are all facing. We are excited to have Kinetica on board and believe that through the collaboration #WePlay will be a huge success this year.’

As of 1st September 2020, Swim Ireland rule that athletes aged 13 years old and younger will not be permitted to compete in a tech suit in any Swim Ireland competition.

Click here to download the new Swim Ireland Tech Suit Policy