Junior Development:

Junior Development/Age Development is the first squad on the 'learn to train' phase of the development pathway. Swimmers will learn to hold efficiency of skill and stroke over longer distances and a little bit of intense swimming. The majority of their 'hard' work will be done through kick while reinforcing the need for effective and efficient travel in the pool on all four strokes. Swimmers will be expected to compete the in the Maxwell Level 3 Open Meets to begin practising race skills developed in a real life race situation.

Competitive Development 1:

Competitive Development 1 is the next squad (after Junior Development) on the 'train to train' phase of the development pathway. Swimmers will continue to hold efficiency of skill and stroke over longer distances and sustain an increased intensity in swimming. Most of their 'hard' work will continue to be done through kick while reinforcing the need for effective and efficient travel in the pool on all four strokes. More focus will be given to energy systems and race practice. Swimmers will be encouraged to compete in the Maxwell Level 3 Open Meets as a minimum, to practice race skills developed in a real-life race situation. Swimmers will be expected to be committed at each session they attend, without the added pressure of attending a specific number of sessions - to allow them flexibility to engage in other sports, activities or focus on educational needs. Swimmers will be working towards being confident in the competitive swimming space. 

Junior Competitive/County Squads:

Junior Competitive/County Squads are the first and second stages of the the 'training to train' phases. Swimmers are predominantly focussing on developing their 'engine potential' or aerobic capacity. The more efficient the heart and lungs, the more oxygen that can be delivered around the body to create enegry. These squads are training the basic 'trainability' to do tougher work later in their swimming development, with a primary focus of holding skill and stroke efficiency over longer distances and a little bit of pressure during certain key sets. However, the primary focus is still built around holding the quality of the stroke and improving the heart and lungs and their ability to oxygenate muscle cells.

Competitive Development 2:

Competitive Development 2 focuses on the 'train to compete' phase. Swimmers are predominantly focusing on continued progression toward 'engine potential' or aerobic capacity. The more efficient the heart and lungs, the more oxygen that can be delivered around the body to create energy. This squad is training and refining the 'trainability' to do tougher work later in their swimming development, with a primary focus of holding skill and stroke efficiency over longer distances and a little bit of pressure during certain key sets. However, the primary focus is still built around holding the quality of the stroke and improving the heart and lungs and their ability to oxygenate muscle cells. Swimmers will be introduced to anaerobic training and continuing to hold skill and stroke efficiency under race pace conditions. Swimmers will be expected to be committed at each session they attend, without the added pressure of attending a specific number of sessions - to allow them flexibility to engage in other sports, activities or focus on educational needs. In addition, this squad allows for older swimmers to train with peers of a similar age, preventing demotivation.  Swimmers will be working towards being confident in the competitive swimming space. Swimmers will be encouraged to engage in available home and away competitions throughout the season.

Performace Foundation

At entry level, Performance Foundation is grounded in the 'training to train' phase. Through progression, swimmers will be introduced to the 'train to compete' phase. Swimmers are predominantly focusing on continued progression toward 'engine potential' or aerobic capacity. The more efficient the heart and lungs, the more oxygen that can be delivered around the body to create energy. These squads are training and refining the 'trainability' to do tougher work later in their swimming development, with a primary focus of holding skill and stroke efficiency over longer distances and a little bit of pressure during certain key sets. However, the primary focus is still built around holding the quality of the stroke and improving the heart and lungs and their ability to oxygenate muscle cells. Swimmers will be introduced to anaerobic training and continuing to hold skill and stroke efficiency under race pace conditions. Swimmers will be expected to show consistent levels of commitment and resilience at each session they attend, with a high level of attendance across the week (minimum of 75% attendance). Swimmers will be targeting County and Regional Qualification through consistent engagement in available home and away competitions throughout the season. This group is expected to follow the performance pathway route through to Perfomance Development, however realistically swimmers will remain in Performance Foundation for some time beforehand.