USA Swimming has announced the results of the 2020 Club Excellence Rankings, and the Nation’s Capital Swim Club has claimed the #1 ranking for the 6th-straight year.
NCAP, the biggest club in the country, earned 81,529 points to easily outpace runner-up SwimMAC Carolina. In fact, NCAP outscored their own total from last year by more than 8,000 points. NCAP is home to USA Swimming National Team member Phoebe Bacon as well as National Junior Team members Paige McKenna, Chase Travis, and Claire Nguyen. World Record holder Katie Ledecky also represents NCAP, her childhood club, at most domestic competitions, although she now trains across the country at Stanford. Only 18 & under athletes are included in club excellence rankings, however.
In total, 20 clubs earned Gold Medal status for 2020. That includes the TAC Titans in North Carolina and Chelsea Piers Aquatic Club in Connecticut, which both earned their first Gold Medal recognition. They became the 85th and 86th different clubs to earn the honor since the program’s exception.
Other teams that were not gold medal clubs last season, but have moved in to the top 20 include Sierra Marlins Swim Team, Nova of Virginia, Bluefish Swim Club, Northern Kentucky Clippers, Badger Swim Club, and Mission Viejo Nadadores.
Illinois swimming had 13 clubs recognized at the gold, silver, and bronze levels to lead all LSCs, while Southern California Swimming had 9 recognized clubs among 200.
100 Gold and Silver Medal clubs receive grant funding that adds up to $400,000. Further, 5 clubs will receive an additional financial bonus as members of the Podium Club – meaning that they have earned Gold Medal status for 4 consecutive years.
2020 Podium Club:
- Nation’s Capital Swim Club
- Sandpipers of Nevada
- Carmel Swim Club
- Pleasanton Seahawks
- Marlins of Raleigh
In addition to grant funding, clubs are able to display logos on team banners and team websites promoting their status.
In the Club Excellence program, all 18 & under members of a club (who are also USA Swimming members and US citizens) are given points for each of their best times throughout the season. Athletes are given “power points” for their times, with bonus multipliers when an athlete achieves a silver or gold time standard. Only long course meters times are accepted.
Points for Gold swims will be multiplied by a factor of 2.0; points for Silver level swims will be increased by a factor of 1.5. The bronze time standard is equal to the 2019 LCM Junior Nationals standards; the silver standard is equal to the 2019 US Nationals standards; and the gold standard is equal to the 150th ranked time in the world from the prior year (women) or 200th ranked time in the world from the prior year (men).
Collegiate athletes are not eligible for scoring in this program, and the rankings are not controlled for club size. Open water swims from the Open Water National Championship meet are included.
2020 Gold Medal Clubs
| Rank | Club Name | LSC | FINA Points |
| 1 | Nation’s Capital Swim Club | PV | 81529 |
| 2 | SwimMAC Carolina | NC | 63258 |
| 3 | Sandpipers of Nevada | CA | 53427 |
| 4 | Mason Manta Rays | OH | 52621 |
| 5 | Dynamo Swim Club | GA | 40554 |
| 6 | SwimAtlanta | GA | 40197 |
| 7 | Carmel Swim Club | IN | 36221 |
| 8 | NOVA of Virginia Aquatics | VA | 32627 |
| 9 | Long Island Aquatic Club | MR | 30866 |
| 10 | Lakeside Swim Team | KY | 26339 |
| 11 | Bluefish Swim Club | NE | 25645 |
| 12 | TAC Titans | NC | 25081 |
| 13 | Pleasanton Seahawks | PC | 24483 |
| 14 | Northern KY Clippers Swimming | OH | 24101 |
| 15 | Nashville Aquatic Club | SE | 23103 |
| 16 | Badger Swim Club | MR | 21997 |
| 17 | Marlins of Raleigh | NC | 21193 |
| 18 | Sierra Marlins Swim Team | SN | 21003 |
| 19 | Chelsea Piers Aquatics Club | CT | 20854 |
| 20 | Mission Viejo Nadadores | CA | 20690 |
2020 Club Excellence Program Time Standards
I fail to see how giving grant money to the top teams helps grow the sport? News flash USA Swimming, the majority of these teams are flush with cash. I know for a fact that one of them has a “war chest” of over $1MM (outside of normal operating funding) that they can use for strategic planning. If a swim team has 7 figures worth of discretionary cash, they surely don’t need a grant. So just like the majority of corporate America, you preach diversity, but you don’t practice it.
Dayton raiders are certainly not filled with cash! I wouldn’t speak without facts. Some teams rely on that funding to stay afloat.
That’s cute. You do realize that most of these teams are non-profit and you can search their tax returns as it is in the public domain. I am quite sure what kind of money most (you see I mentioned most not all) of these teams are sitting on. The team nearest me that has gold status has over $5 million in NET assets. They received over $400k in various grants last year…..they don’t need the money!
USA Swimming is basically an aggregator of talent, and it sees these super clubs as the most effective way to get talented kids practicing together under capable coaches. A level playing field for small clubs isn’t their priority because they don’t think it would be efficient.
That’s exactly my point. USA Swimming needs to stop being a hypocrite and preaching diversity when in reality, they just want the rich to get richer (which as an NGB, should be outlawed). It is worth noting that a vast majority of our Olympic Team did not develop under one of these “super” clubs.
Agree. The system is set up so that small teams……the ones who could really use the grant money……have no shot at it. A team with 50-70 kids may have the highest percentage of them make cuts for LSC champs, sectionals, future, JN’s, etc. but because there are so few, can’t possibly touch the point totals of the big teams who are flush with cash.
Team sizes?
Mason has 296 swimmers in one 25 yard pool.
Is the mason fundraising your full time job?
4th and the future looks bright!
https://www.amatterof50meters.org/
How exactly does the pool make kids faster?
Why do you consistently attack the Mason Manta Rays in the comment section?
I resent the constant pressure for taxpayers (me!) to fund a 50 million dollar playpen. The success of a few kids is being leveraged into my wallet
No team in the US, including the national team, gets more fawning coverage. Breathless reports over scratches and what some one athlete might do in their next race. Endless videos by parents. Enough!
Is there a link to the full results?