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While statistics show that fewer than half of the US Masters Swimming membership participates in structured competitions, many members choose to participate in coached swimming practices.  The most common reasons cited by swimmers for team practices is that they are better motivated towards improvement in a group setting, and they like the personal attention of the coach.  After all the hard work it seems only natural to test these skills at a meet to see what kind of progress has been made.

While most events, especially at the Team and LMSC levels of organization, can be somewhat casual in nature there is still a very serious side to these events since there is always the possibility of a local, zone, national, or even world level record being broken.

While most competitions take place in pools, there are also records kept for Open Water (OW) swimming.

The amount of organization and work it takes to make a nationwide competitive process work is pretty impressive, particularly when you consider that nearly all jobs within the USMS structure are managed by volunteers.

United States Masters Swimming (USMS) is divided into eight zones.  Each zone is then divided into Local Masters Swimming Committees, or LMSC's.  Each LMSC is then represented by a governing body, and the list of Teams or Clubs that fall under their jurisdiction.  Southern Masters Swimming (SMS) represents the Southern LMSC, which is part of the Dixie Zone of USMS.

Membership in USMS is required to participate in USMS Sanctioned Events.  You join USMS at the LMSC level by filling out the membership application provided by the LMSC.

It is not necessary to be a member of a team to participate in USMS sanctioned events (this status is defined as an "unattached" swimmer).  But there are a number of benefits to being on a team.   As a team member the points you earn can contribute towards a possible Team Award.  And being a team member allows you to participate in Relay Events, which are often the most exciting (and most fun) part of the meet.  Relays also contribute a great deal towards points for Team Awards.

If you are an independent swimmer, or if the facility where you practice has no team, you can typically join a team in your local area or region simply by including them on your annual USMS membership form.  (Changing affiliations, even from unattached, in mid year may require another form and a processing fee.)  You may want to check with a team before joining them.  Most teams are happy to include other swimmers outside their practice circle as this helps boost points (for team awards) and increase relay team entries at meets (for more team points).  If you visit a meet as an unattached swimmer be prepared for some recruiting enticements by members of some of the teams present.

There are competitions for each level of organization.  USMS provides National Competitions to USMS members.  These events typically require that a qualifying time be met in order to enter the meet.  The following levels of organization (zone, LMSC, team) typically have events that are open to any USMS member who wants to participate.

Swimmers participate in brackets separated by gender and age.  Except for the first age bracket (19-24), they run in five year increments (x0-x4 and x5-x9).  Relays are divided into age bracket ranges, which the total age of the relay team falls into.

There are three basic swim courses for which records information is maintained.  Each course falls into a specific season.  For records information a specific age day is set in order to properly categorize the times swum.  The following rules generally apply:

Awards are typically distributed as a part of USMS Sanctioned Events.  At Championship Events, especially at the LMSC level, there is usually a rivalry of some kind going on as the larger teams vie for the first place team trophy (which can add a lot of excitement to the meet).  In addition to team trophies (mostly at larger events) there can also be individual awards given for High Point Score swimmers in each age bracket (by gender).

While USMS Sanctioned Events have a very serious side, that must be properly and consistently followed by the officials governing them, there is also a much more casual and social side to them.  Most participants would probably agree that the best part of the events is the opportunity to see old friends, and meet new ones.  Events at every level, whether it is a one-day or multi-day event, will typically have a social (with eats and treats) at some point during the meet, so be sure to inquire about this friendly opportunity.

View Your First Swim Meet and the SMS FAQ for additional information on meets.  For an overview of what events are used in each course see the Distances by Course section.

Visit the SMS Teams section if you wish to contact a SoLMSC Team, or need a SMS Team Abbreviation to complete you USMS membership application.

Each level of organization keeps a set of records.  So there is a different records list maintained by each LMSC, each Zone, and USMS.

The Southern Masters Records consist of the fastest times ever swum by a currently (at the time of the swim) registered Southern Masters Swimmer.  A swim may take place in any USA,  FINA, or USMS approved or sanctioned meet.  If a swim takes place in a USMS meet sanctioned by Southern Masters swimming, the SMS records keeper should automatically receive the results and update the records.  However, if a swim takes place outside of Louisiana or Mississippi then it is up to the swimmer to contact our SMS records keeper and present physical evidence of the result in the form of a hard copy or a direct internet link to the results.


The USMS Top 10 consists of the 10 fastest times for each gender, age group, and event that were swum by USMS registered swimmers during the yearly cycle of each swim course.

Times must be swum in a pool with a minimum length of the designated course and be recorded by automatic timing or at least two watches.  The swim must take place in a USA, FINA, or USMS sanctioned or approved meet.

Each LMSC Top 10 recorder is responsible for submitting all the times swum by USMS registered swimmers (no one day registrations) from all USMS sanctioned meets swum within the Top 10 recorder's LMSC.

For the times to count the LMSC must have on file a pool length certification which states that all swim lanes are at least as long as the course in which the meet is swum.  If the meet is swum in a movable bulkhead pool then the middle and outside lanes must be measured to confirm minimum course length at the end of each session.

For times swum outside the USMS sanction system (such as USA or FINA meets) the SMS swimmer must contact the SMS recorder with either a hard copy of the results or a link on the internet to the official results.

For further information on the rules of Top 10 please refer to Records and Tabulation within the USMS rule book.

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