For the past 20 years, North Star Swim Club’s Shining Star Mini Meets has given younger swimmers their own meet and championship experience.
A group of parents created the 7-and-under meets for boys and girls to give younger swimmers to have their own championships similar to what older kids get in the Suburban Swim League, parent volunteer Angela O’Connor, of North Star, said.
At the meets, an important fundraising event the club, every swimmer receives a participation ribbon after every event, O’Connor said. And the top five finishers in each individual event and top three relay finishers earn medals.
Children learn good sportsmanship, and they enjoy reaching across their lane after races to shake hands with their opponents, said O’Connor, of North Star.
Kyle DiPietro, of Landenberg, Pa., has two children who participated in the Mini Meets. Sydney, 6, swam in the girls meets, and Cole, 4, swam in the boys meets. Both of the children, members of North Star Swim Team, were excited to swim competitively, DiPietro said.
“Cole was awarded two medals for freestyle and backstroke and he carefully placed them on his shelf that he named the ‘fragile shelf’ where nobody can touch them,” DiPietro said.
“Sydney did not receive any medals but since this is their first year on a swim team and having seen the medals and gone through the Mini Meet experience, it has allowed her to think about her goals,” he said. “She made comments about wanting to win a medal next year and it lead into discussions on how to make that goal come true.”
This summer, 125 girls and 72 boys participated, O’Connor said. Swimmers came from the following swim clubs: Arundel, Drummond Hill, Fairfield, HAC, Kennett Area YMCA, Newark Country Club, Nottingham Green, Oaklands, Oakwood Valley, Persimmon Creek, Skyline, Western YMCA, Westminster and Yorklyn. There were also swimmers who enter the meet "unaffiliated" with swim clubs.
Swimmers skill levels range from "getting down the length of the pool" to young swimmers already showing amazing talent, O’Connor said.
“As will all summer sports, some children enjoy their summer swimming and some will go on to be successful competitive swimming careers,” she said. “Both are valid choices. Certainly, there are children who are already exhibiting amazing swimming skills at 5-6 years old.”
For example, the 7-year-old boys had six heats in the 25-yard freestyle race (a total of 30 swimmers) and the times varied from 17.95 seconds for first place finisher Smith Worden, of Oaklands Swim Club, to a minute for O’Connor’s youngest son Rory.
“The idea is they get grouped with similar swimmers. And they’re going to have a chance to maybe win their heat,” she said. “Whether they win or not everybody gets a participant ribbon and a lollipop. The idea is to have fun and celebrate their accomplishments.”
In addition to her youngest son Rory, O’Connor’s sons Griffin, 12, and Kieran, 9, who competed in the 7U meets in the past, volunteered at the meet. They distributed water to officials and ran heat times back and forth to the scorers’ table.
