What is USA Swimming?

USA Swimming is the National Governing Body for amateur competitive swimming in the United States. USA Swimming was conceived in 1978 (Note three years after Issaquah Swim Team) with the passage of the Amateur Sports Act, which specified that all Olympic sports would be administered independently. Prior to this act, USA Swimming was the Competitive Swimming Committee of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) located in Indianapolis, Indiana. USA Swimming Headquarters office was established in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1981 and is located at the Olympic Training Center.

As the National Governing Body for the sport, USA Swimming is responsible for the conduct and administration of swimming in the United States. In this capacity, USA Swimming formulates the rules, implements policies and procedures, conducts the national championships, disseminates safety and sports medicine information and selects the athletes to represent the United States in international competitions.

How is United States Swimming Organized?

International - The International federation for the aquatic sports is the Federation International de Natation Amateur (FINA). USA Swimming is affiliated with FINA through United States Aquatic Sports (USAS) made up of the four aquatic sports - swimming, synchronized swimming, diving and water polo.

National: USA Swimming is a Group A member of the United States Olympic Committees (USOC) and has voting representation in the USOC House of Delegates.

Local: Within the Unites States, USA Swimming is divided into fifty-nine (59) Local Swimming Committees (LSCs) each one responsible for administering USA Swimming activities in a defined geographical area. Each LSC has its own set of by-laws under which it operates. Our team is part of Pacific Northwest Swimming (PNS), which covers all of Washington west of but not including Okanogan, Chelan, Kittatas, and Yakima counties, and north of but not including Cowlitz, Skamania, and Klickitat counties.

A House of Delegates with representation of athletes, coaches, members of the Board of Directors and clubs is responsible for managing the business affairs of each LSC. Our club president is our representative to the LSC and attends each House of Delegates meeting.

PNS has its own by-laws and organization; a copy of the by-laws and related information are in the annual Aquatics Guide or “Blue Book”.

USA Swimming, PNS and the Issaquah Swim Team are all non-profit 501 (c) (3) organizations recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).