Stanford, California – USA Swimming has selected Stanford University’s Avery Aquatic Center as the fourth site for USA Swimming Futures Championships, August 4th – 7, 2016.
The meet will be jointly hosted by the Cardinal site of Palo Alto Stanford Aquatics (PASA-Cardinal) and USA Swimming.
Futures Championships will bring club swimming teams from the western region of the US to the Palo Alto area to participate in four days of competition. Fans can purchase pre-sale tickets or pay for admissions at the door and a large spectator crowd is expected, especially among the many youth and club swimmers in the surrounding area.
The meet will be one of the largest meets hosted in recent Avery Aquatic Center history.
The Avery Aquatic Center also hosted the 2004 and 2008 USA Olympic Swimming Team prior to the Olympics, 2004 and 2011 Summer Junior / Senior Swimming Nationals and the 2006 FINA Masters World Championships. With two 50-meter pools (Belardi and Baker), the Avery Competition pool, and the Maas Diving Center, the Avery Aquatic Center is considered one of the best facilities in the world and and an ideal venue for a meet of this size.
The Avery Aquatic Center has a rich history of elite level athletics. It is home to Stanford’s Men’s and Women’s Swim Teams which are perennial powerhouses producing both NCAA Champions and Olympians.
Swim teams are assigned a Futures location based on geography, and a boundary map can be found through the USA Swimming website, along with meet time standards and travel details. Bids to host the meet were submitted in fall 2015, and final hosts were chosen in December.
Parents, swimmers, and coaches from PASA-Cardinal will be partnering with Pacific Swimming, Stanford, and a local team of volunteers to staff all of the volunteers needed to host the event.
“PASA-Cardinal is excited to partner with both USA Swimming and Stanford to host Futures Championships. The Avery Aquatic Center is a perfect venue for this event. Our team is fortunate to have an incredible group of dedicated parent volunteers who have already begun planning and organizing for the event”, says Head Coach Joey Sementelli.
PASA is nationally and internationally recognized for competitive swimming excellence. Over the past 10 years, PASA has ranked consistently as one of the top teams in the United States and the top team in Northern California. PASA-Cardinal has hosted a number of local meets and Futures Championships will be one of the club’s largest events to date.
“Our team, Palo Alto Stanford Aquatics, will have a strong presence at Futures Championships this August and the meet will host hundreds of high level athletes from the Western region of the United States. We are looking forward to a fast and exciting meet”, says Coach Joey Sementelli.
In order to qualify to compete at Futures Championships, swimmers must meet the Futures Championship qualifying standards. These standards are intended to bridge the space between Sectionals and Junior Nationals. The four host locations will be:
- The University of Maryland Natatorium in College Park, MD (Northeast)
- McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, GA (Southern)
- Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin, TX (Midwest)
- Avery Aquatic Center in Stanford, CA (Western)
Up to date Meet information can be found on USA Swimming: Futures Championships 2016
Additional information can be found on the PASA-Cardinal website: www.pasacardinal.com.
Swimming news courtesy of PASA.
