State Swim Meet Should Turn Back to Old Format

There are some things in this constantly changing world that are best left unchanged. Such is the case with the state swimming and diving championships.

Many swimming coaches questioned the rationale when the Florida High School Athletic Association changed the format of the state meets this year – regional meets were added and the state finals for all three classifications were staged the same day. The coaches’ concerns were substantiated last weekend during the state championships in Gainesville.

In the past, the state meet was a three-day event, with each classification having morning prelims and evening championship finals held on one day. This year, however, prelims for all three classes were held on Friday and the finals for all three on Saturday, including diving. The swimming was fantastic, but for many fans it was a disaster.

Fans began forming lines outside the University of Florida’s O’Connell Center Natatorium around 3 p.m. Saturday for the swimming finals that were scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. By 4:30 p.m. the lines of fans, estimated at 1,000-plus, had snaked back to streets around the O’Connell Center and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. They still were standing outside the doors waiting to get in at 6:30 p.m. because the boys diving competition ended later than expected, delaying the start of the swimming finals.

Officials asked fans attending the diving finals to exit the O’Connell Center Natatorium, which holds approximately 1,200, following the conclusion of the awards ceremony, but hardly anyone left, and the stands already were near capacity. Meanwhile, outside the arena, fans who were holding tickets to the swimming finals grew restless, then visibly upset shortly after 7 p.m. when they heard the national anthem being played inside, signaling the start of the swimming finals. Several fans standing near the front of the lines said they had been standing there for almost four hours before the doors finally were opened, allowing some fans inside.

As the venue quickly filled to capacity, officials met with UF police officers to discuss what obviously had grown into an unforeseen problem. One was overheard telling an official that if any more fans were allowed inside the building the fire marshal might shut down the event. The doors immediately were closed, leaving fans at the entrance stunned. Only when fans inside left the arena were others allowed inside as the meet continued. The FHSAA decided to refund money to those who did not wish to wait. Less than 150 accepted that offer.

By 8:15 p.m., most of the lines had disappeared, and inside, fans literally packed the rafters. Later that night, Suncoast senior Scott Blake said that his grandmother had fainted from the exhaustion of standing in line so long and missed seeing him swim.

Another local swimmer’s parent, who asked not to be identified, said he estimates it cost him and his family about $700 for three nights in a hotel and other travel expenses to attend the meet, only to have to miss part of it.

Shortly after the meet ended around 11:15 p.m., the FHSAA issued an official apology, which was sent to principals of every school in the state Monday, to “those individuals who were inconvenienced.” The FHSAA should be applauded for accepting full blame, and hopefully a lesson has been learned.

This was a fragmented swimming season because of hurricanes, and having to switch venues from Sebastian to Gainesville only a month before the state championships was unforeseen.

Another problem was that the O’Connell Center Natatorium’s diving well is at the end of the pool where the swimming races are staged. Still, it’s obvious that no venue – except perhaps the Hall of Fame pool in Fort Lauderdale – could have handled the crowd for this year’s state meet.

A repeat of this can be avoided by returning to the previous format and having separate state meets on three separate days for each classification. It worked before just fine. It’s the best solution, and hopefully one that will be adopted again for next year’s championships.

steve_dorsey@pbpost.com