Issue 1, 2021/2022 by Graham Edwards - 30th October, 2021

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Welcome

How great was it to start the season last Saturday morning. With community sport being able to commence the Committee quickly decided to get the ball rolling immediately. It was great to see familiar faces, not just on phone and computer screens in FaceTime, Zoom, Teams or whatever other technology everyone was using to stay in touch with each other.

With the loss of some weeks at the start of October, two weeks off at Christmas (Christmas & New Year's Day both fall on a Saturday) and a mass of Area, State & National meets during the season, the race program for the season will look a bit different this year. The Competition Committee is working on completing the season program now all the meet dates are known and this will be published soon. In the meantime, take the opportunity to swim your qualifying swims for your upcoming championship events.

When published the season program will be available on the club website at https://www.merrylandsasc.asn.au/clubraces. Please take time to review the season program and plan your swims early.

Committee 2021/2022

The Executive and Committee Members elected are:

Executive Members

 Committee Members

COVID-19 Safety Plan & Protocols

As we all know Public Health Orders and Guidelines are constantly updated and they play an important role in setting the protocols the club is required to comply with. A new COVID-19 Safety Plan for the club has been developed in line with the current Public Health Orders.

We ask for your assistance in complying with the protocols & plan in place. We will communicate changes as they occur and these updates can be found online at https://www.merrylandsasc.asn.au/news

Please remember:

• You must check in using the Council QR code at pool entry;
• Anyone (coach/athlete/parent/official/spectator) who is unwell for any reason should not attend any training, competition or club activity;
• If you become unwell whilst at the pool please advise us and leave immediately;
• Protect yourself and others from getting sick by following good personal hygiene practices and maintaining physical distancing. We have hand sanitiser available for your use;
• Swimmers should not share any equipment including goggles, drink bottles or towels;
• Maintain social distancing when at the swimming centre. We have designated areas around the pool and ask for your assistance in complying with these;
• Access to the club room is available for officials only to retrieve equipment required for club use;
• If you wish to wear a mask whilst at the pool we recommend that you bring this with you.

PLEASE CHECK YOUR SWIM CENTRAL PROFILE AND ENSURE YOUR CONTACT DETAILS (PARENTS & CHILDREN) ARE UP-TO-DATE

Championship Eligibility

The Club By-Laws set out the Eligibility to Compete in Championships (By-Law 21). Some key points to remember are:

• Only Financial First Claim Members are eligible to compete in Championships;
• Entrants must have swum that stroke and that distance in the current season.

It is therefore important to plan your swims so that you have swum the stroke and distance if you plan to compete in the Championship for that stroke and distance. The season program sets out the Championship dates to allow appropriate planning of your swims.

There are many situations that may arise which impact on swimmers plans. These situations may mean for example that the pool is closed for club races or the individual swimmer may have circumstances which preclude them from swimming at a particular time (for example COVID-19 health guidelines constantly being changed and updated). All members must continue to comply with health guidelines that are in place and there may be circumstances arise which impact on your ability to swim the stroke and distance in eligibility preparation.

As such the Committee strongly recommends that swimmers plan and undertake their eligibility swims as early in the season as possible, rather than leaving these swims to the last week available before the Championship event is to be swum.

A failure by a swimmer to swim an eligibility swim will preclude their participation in that Championship.

Club Captains

Nominations for the positions of Male and Female Club Captains are open and close at 9.30am on week 4 (13^th November, 2021). Information about the duties and responsibilities of Club Captains can be found on the club website in the By-Laws.

All financial first claim members can vote for these positions on week 6 (27^th November, 2021).

Technical Officials

Welcome back to all of our technical officials. For those who are non-swimming members don’t forget to renew your Dry/Support membership to ensure your technical accreditation remains current.

Membership

Club Membership is for a 12 month period from 1st October to 30th September each year. The annual membership fee includes affiliation to Swimming NSW, Swimming Australia and insurance coverage.

Changes this season include:

• New COVID-19 Conditions for entry to the pool and for training
• New Membership Categories and prices, resulting in lower membership fees for many swimmers. You can now choose to join as a Recreational Swimmer if you don't swim Club Races, or a Club Swimmer if you don't swim at external swimming meets. Your membership can be upgraded at a later date if required.
• COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate or Medical Exemption must be uploaded with your club membership application.
• No physical membership cards - you will need to download a copy of your membership card from Swim Central to show to Council Staff when requested.
• All people entering the swimming centre will be required to use the Service NSW QR code and show Council Staff proof of vaccination.

 The Club Membership Fees for 2021/2022 are listed below. The fees include the Swimming NSW and Swimming Australia Membership fees. 

• Dry/Supporter: $23
• Recreational Swimmer: $50
• Club Swimmer: $70.00*
• Full Swimmer: $86.00

 Additional Fees apply for Masters Membership.

 * Free Membership for 8yrs & Under

Thanks to a grant received from Club Merrylands swimmers aged 8yrs & Under, who regularly swim in our club races or train in our squad program may be eligible to receive a reimbursement on their membership fees. For more information on eligibility criteria and how to claim reimbursement see the club website.

Squad Enrolment

It’s time to complete your squad enrolment if you haven’t already done so and you plan to train over the summer season.

All swimmers must complete new enrolment forms and their club membership. The steps to follow are:

1. Review the new COVID-19 Conditions
2. Download your COVID-19 Digital Certificate (PDF) from Services Australia
3. Complete your Club Membership renewal, including uploading your COVID-19 Digital Certificate
4. Complete your Squad Enrolment
5. Purchase your Squad Multi-Session Pass and any new equipment you need
6. Download a copy of your Membership Card

Swimmers must not attend sessions if unwell, for any reason. It is also possible sessions may need to be cancelled due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

Full details of squad enrolment and changes to training for this season can be found at https://www.merrylandsasc.asn.au/news

Sponsors

We receive great support from our club sponsors and we thank them for this support.

Club Uniforms

We have a great range of club uniforms available for sale. These can be purchased through the club’s online shop.

Some items require special orders to be placed, so minimum numbers may be required before orders for these items can be placed with the supplier.

If you have any questions about club uniforms please talk to the Property Officer (Margaret Edwards).

https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/club-uniforms

In the Media

An article about our club was included in the Auburn Review online edition this week. To read it online visit https://www.localnewsplus.com.au/review

Upcoming Meet Calendar