Indiana University Natatorium
Indianapolis, Indiana May 7-10, 1998

Meet Information

Greater Indiana Masters Swimming is proud to host the 1998 USMS Short Course National Championships. Participants are asked to read the following information carefully and refer to the checklist on the entry form to avoid any problems or misunderstandings regarding the conduct of the meet. All times listed are Eastern Standard Time.

Location
Indiana University Natatorium, 901 West New York Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202 (on the campus of I.U.P.U.I.)

Facilities
The Natatorium is an indoor facility with spectator seating for 4,700 and a 50-meter championship pool set up as two 25-yard courses, each with eight nine-foot lanes and a water depth of nine to ten feet. The Natatorium includes an eight-lane, 25 yard-diving tank and a 25-yard instructional pool, available for continuous warmup during the meet.

Headquarters Hotel
(within walking distance of the pool)
University Place Hotel and Conference Ctr.
850 West Michigan St.
Indianapolis, IN 46202 
(317) 269-9000 or (800) 627-2700, $99

Other Hotels on Shuttle Route
Westin Hotel (1 mile from pool)
50 S. Capitol Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
1-800-228-3000, S/D $118, T $138, Q $158

Courtyard Marriott (3/4 mile from pool)
501 W. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
1-800-321-2211, $98

Hyatt Hotel (1 mile from pool)
1 S. Capital Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
1-800-233-1234, $120

Travel/Airlines
Creative World Travel (1-800-773-8468) has been named the official booking agent for the meet. Special fares are available through Creative World Travel on Northwest Airlines and US Airways.

Meet Shuttle Service and Parking
Shuttle service will be available from the headquarters hotel and the hotels listed above to the Natatorium. A schedule for the complimentary shuttle service will be available at registration.

Parking
Parking is available in the garage adjacent to the Natatorium. Five-day parking passes ($12) will be available for purchase at the meet registration desk. RV/trailer parking is not permitted.

Ground Transportation
Transportation from the airport to the downtown hotels (15 minutes) is available by taxi or by hotel shuttles.

Meet Officials
Meet Referee - Lucy Duncan (317) 745-6817
Meet Directors: Sharon Wise, Mel Goldstein and Doug Church

General Meeting
All swimmers, coaches and officials should be represented at the general meeting at the Natatorium on Wednesday, May 6, at 7 p.m. Matters pertinent to the operation and conduct of the meet will be discussed.

Coaches Registration
All coaches should register prior to the meet by indicating coaching status on the meet entry form (top right box) and, if not competing, by completing the personal information section of the entry form only and mailing in by entry deadline.

Coaches Meeting
A meeting of the Masters Aquatic Coaches Association will be held on Saturday, May 9, from 6 to 7 a.m. at the Natatorium.

Coaches School
A Masters Aquatic Coaches Association (MACA) Certification School will be held on Wednesday, May 6, from 1 to 5 p.m. For more information, contact Brian Stack, 680 33rd St., Richmond, CA 94804. (510)235-6842. E-mail: stackb@aol.com.

EMERGENCY TELEPHONE
(317)274-3518 - Emergencies only
DO NOT USE FOR CHECK-IN!

Registration
All participants must register prior to competing to receive a meet program, tickets for the social and other meet information. Registration will be held at the Natatorium on the upper level on Wednesday, May 6, from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. and on Thursday through Sunday from 6:30 a.m. until the end of the day's events. Check-in for distance events and relays will be available in the same area.

Check-in (General)
CHECK-IN IS REQUIRED FOR 400 IM, 500 FREE, 1000 FREE AND 1650 FREE -- NO EXCEPTIONS! Coaches and teammates may check in for those swimmers whose travel plans do not permit check-in by 6 p.m.

Check-in (1000 and 1650 free)
Swimmers in the 1000 or 1650 freestyle must check in by 6 p.m. on Wednesday, May 6, at the Natatorium. Telephone check-in for the 1000 and 1650 freestyles will be available on Tuesday, May 5, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. and on Wednesday, May 6, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Swimmers entered in the 1000 or 1650 freestyles will be notified by mail of the number and procedure for phone check-in. At the time of the call, a confirmation number will be issued, which swimmers will be responsible for producing upon request to confirm phone check-in.

Check-in (500 free and 400 IM)
All participants swimming the 500 free and 400 IM must check in prior to 6 p.m. on the day before the event will be swum. Any swimmer failing to check in by the 6 p.m. deadline will be considered scratched from that event.

Eligibility
The National Championships are open to any swimmer at least 19 years of age as of April 2, 1998. If a swimmer wishes to affiliate with a Masters club, the club and swimmer must both be registered with the same Local Masters Swim Committee (LMSC). If there are questions about affiliation, the swimmer shall be entered "unattached." Foreign swimmers are welcome. Entries must include a copy of swimmer's USMS registration card or International Travel Permit and fees in U.S. dollars.

Age Groups
Individual events: 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49...100-104. Relay events: 19+, 25+. 35+, 45+ ... (ten year increments as high as necessary). Age for the meet is determined as of the last day of the meet (May 10, 1998).

Scoring
Individual events: 11-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Relay events: 22-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2

Team Scoring
Team scoring will be divided into three divisions: Division I (large team), Division II (medium team), and Division III (small team), each containing three categories - men, women, and combined. Mixed relays are scored only in the combined category. The USMS Championship Commit-tee will determine divisions after the entry deadline based on number of entrants from each club.

Awards
Customized medals will be awarded for first through tenth places in each age group. A USMS Championship patch will be given to each individual and relay team member for the first event won. Swimmers winning more than one event may purchase additional patches for each additional event won. Unclaimed awards will not be mailed unless arrangements are made in advance at the meet. Awards will be presented to the top three teams in each category of each division.

Gold Medal Sponsorship
Gold Medal Sponsors will be recognized in the official program as supporters of Masters swimming, entitled to V.I.P. hospitality on deck and receive a commemorative gift. Cost of one sponsorship will be $50. Order sponsorships on meet entry form.

Final Results
Complete final results, to be mailed after the meet, may be ordered for $15. Individual swimmer's final results, including splits, will be available at the meet for $5 each.

Seeding
Individual events 200 yards or less will be pre-seeded and swum slowest to fastest within each age group, oldest to youngest. Partial heats may be combined. Women's heats will precede men's heats for each event. The 1000 and 1650 freestyles and the 400 IM will be deck-seeded slowest to fastest by time only for each sex. The 500 freestyle will be deck-seeded first by age group and then by time.

Warm-up Times
The competition pool will be open for warmup from 6:30 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. on each day of competition. On Wednesday, May 14, warmup is from 1 p.m. until 8 p.m. at the Natatorium. On competition days, the warm-up pools will be available from 6:30 a.m. until 30 minutes following the conclusion of the final event.

Warm-up Procedures
Swimmers must enter the pool feet first in a cautious manner. No diving is allowed except in designated sprint lanes, and no diving is allowed in the warm-up pools. Racing starts, including backstroke starts, are allowed only in designated sprint lanes during the pre-meet warm-up sessions, where one or two lanes shall be designated as "One-Way Sprint Lanes." No sprint lanes will be designated in the warm-up pools. ANY SWIMMER WHO ACTS IN AN UNSPORTSMANLIKE OR UNSAFE MANNER WITHIN THE SWIMMING VENUE MAY BE CONSIDERED FOR APPROPRIATE ACTION OR PENALTY AT THE DISCRETION OF THE REFEREE (Rule 102.15.2).

Sixth Event Rule
If, in the opinion of the USMS Championship Committee, the meet is deemed too large to be run in an efficient manner, a swimmer's sixth event will be dropped. Each swimmer entering six events must indicate the sixth event as directed on the entry form. The sixth event cannot be changed after the entry is submitted.

Scratches
Any swimmer who fails to report to the proper lane in the correct heat of his/her event will be considered scratched from that event and will not be permitted to swim that event at another time.

Official Verification Card (OVC)
For an OVC, contact the following official prior to the meet: Lucy Duncan, 235 Poplar Grove Dr., Danville, IN 46122. Phone (317) 745-6817.

Attractions
Practice for the Indianapolis 500 will begin on Sunday, May 10. The Children's Museum is the largest of its kind. Circle Center Mall, located downtown, offers both shopping and entertainment. Also located downtown are the Indianapolis Zooand Victory Field, home of the Indianapolis Indians AAA Baseball.

Concessions, Vendors, Souvenir Items
A full-service snack bar is available in the lobby of the Natatorium. Vendors will offer souvenirs, swimming apparel and other merchandise. Commemorative clothing items with meet logo will be sold.

Temperature and Climate
Daytime temperatures average in the 60s.

Early Entry Raffle
Swimmers whose entries arrive postmarked prior to February 28, 1998, will be entered into one of two lotteries (male and female). Sponsors' prizes will be awarded to the lottery winners during the meet.

Swimmers' Soiree
The buffet/social will be held at University Place Hotel on Saturday, May 9th. Cost is $17.50 per person and limited to the first 400 who register.

Entry Form Instructions