Why would we require citizenship for USMS Registration? Wouldn't USMS need a rule first about USMS Record requirements and the only masters swimmers that would be eligible for them would be citizens of the USA. Unless things have significantly changed from 9 years ago there was no support at the convention for any kind of change the way we tabulate USMS Records. It was pointed out that we have records as an organization and they are called USMS Records. We don't have American Records, US Open Records, and Championship Meet Records at USMS Nationals. To simply things and have less complexity, we do it this way and its been done this way for the last 40 years or so.
Swimming at both the FINA and USA-S levels have requirements for citizenship, requiring swimmers only to swim for one NGB, and having swimmers set records for separate classification such as in USA-S case, American Records, US Open Records and Championship Meet Records. This would be a lot of extra work for volunteers and the National Office to keep track of registrations and swims in meets with foreign swimmers who are not American citizens. To have us ask for passports and green cards seems little excessive for masters swimming and the organization as a whole. Recently there have been many elite foreign swimmers that have set USMS Records so this Nicolas Granger setting records is nothing new.
If people feel strongly about this, they should put a USMS Rule proposal for a change to be submitted at the Convention this fall. Perhaps many think that things have changed in the last 9 years since 2006. Since this is not a Rules year, this proposal would need a 90% vote to pass in the HOD and it would have to be declared an Emergency Rule change. Other wise it would have to wait until 2016 to get a majority assuming the Records & Top Ten Committee would approve it and if they did not, then it would need a 2/3 vote to pass.
Why would we require citizenship for USMS Registration? Wouldn't USMS need a rule first about USMS Record requirements and the only masters swimmers that would be eligible for them would be citizens of the USA. Unless things have significantly changed from 9 years ago there was no support at the convention for any kind of change the way we tabulate USMS Records. It was pointed out that we have records as an organization and they are called USMS Records. We don't have American Records, US Open Records, and Championship Meet Records at USMS Nationals. To simply things and have less complexity, we do it this way and its been done this way for the last 40 years or so.
Swimming at both the FINA and USA-S levels have requirements for citizenship, requiring swimmers only to swim for one NGB, and having swimmers set records for separate classification such as in USA-S case, American Records, US Open Records and Championship Meet Records. This would be a lot of extra work for volunteers and the National Office to keep track of registrations and swims in meets with foreign swimmers who are not American citizens. To have us ask for passports and green cards seems little excessive for masters swimming and the organization as a whole. Recently there have been many elite foreign swimmers that have set USMS Records so this Nicolas Granger setting records is nothing new.
If people feel strongly about this, they should put a USMS Rule proposal for a change to be submitted at the Convention this fall. Perhaps many think that things have changed in the last 9 years since 2006. Since this is not a Rules year, this proposal would need a 90% vote to pass in the HOD and it would have to be declared an Emergency Rule change. Other wise it would have to wait until 2016 to get a majority assuming the Records & Top Ten Committee would approve it and if they did not, then it would need a 2/3 vote to pass.
