I'm not so sure the number of super elite swimmers who don't swim masters is substantially different than the number of swimmers as a whole who swam when they were younger but don't swim masters. The bottom line is the vast majority of kids who were competitive swimmers leave the competitive side of the sport never to return.
I don't want to drive this too far off topic but THIS I find to be a huge issue. I have about 50 swimmers from my youth days I still keep in touch with through Facebook or whatnot. The number that still swim regularly? One, me. The number that will occasionally dabble back in the pool? Another three.
A husband and wife couple from my youth days, one of whom was crazy fast, just posted that they are getting rid of the pool that came with their new home last year because they are "not pool people". This makes me so sad.
Our facility attracts members from 12 towns with youth teams. We have only 9 former swimmers and 5 of them had the same coach on three separate teams. The three dabblers on my Facebook feed? Same coach as the 5 masters members and I have friends from 4 different teams. This is not a coincidence. A coach can make or break whether kids want to swim for life.
I'm not so sure the number of super elite swimmers who don't swim masters is substantially different than the number of swimmers as a whole who swam when they were younger but don't swim masters. The bottom line is the vast majority of kids who were competitive swimmers leave the competitive side of the sport never to return.
I don't want to drive this too far off topic but THIS I find to be a huge issue. I have about 50 swimmers from my youth days I still keep in touch with through Facebook or whatnot. The number that still swim regularly? One, me. The number that will occasionally dabble back in the pool? Another three.
A husband and wife couple from my youth days, one of whom was crazy fast, just posted that they are getting rid of the pool that came with their new home last year because they are "not pool people". This makes me so sad.
Our facility attracts members from 12 towns with youth teams. We have only 9 former swimmers and 5 of them had the same coach on three separate teams. The three dabblers on my Facebook feed? Same coach as the 5 masters members and I have friends from 4 different teams. This is not a coincidence. A coach can make or break whether kids want to swim for life.
