For eighteen years, the Shenandoah Marlins Aquatic Club (SMAC) has been hosting one of the largest outdoor swimming competitions in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The 2014 Subway Commonwealth Games long course swim meet will be held at the War Memorial Pool in Waynesboro’s Ridgeview Park, June 27-29.
Three full days of competition will begin early Friday morning and continue through Sunday evening. Nearly five hundred swimmers from fifteen teams will compete in the 8-lane, 50 meter pool. The athletes, most aged seven through eighteen years, will represent the following teams: Battlefield Area Star Swimmers, Madison, VA, Coast Guard Blue Dolphins, Yorktown, VA, Fluvanna Aquatics Sports Team, Madison, VA, NOVA of Virginia Aquatics, Richmond, VA, Piedmont Family YMCA, Earlysville, VA, Rappahannock Raiders Swim Club, Dahlgren, VA, Richmond Racers, Richmond, VA, Sanford Squids, Sanford, NC, Shenandoah Marlins Aquatic Club, Waynesboro, VA, Stafford Aquatic Team, Stafford, VA, Tri-City Aquatic Club, Virginia Beach, VA, Virginia Gators, Charlottesville, VA, and Winchester Swim Team, Winchester, VA.
Numerous coaches, Virginia Swimming Officials, and swimmer’s families will also attend the meet, bringing a large influx of activity to Waynesboro and the surrounding area.
Over 900 hours of volunteer effort are required to run the 3-day meet, in addition to many hours of planning and preparation. Virginia Swimming Officials and SMAC parents provide the bulk of volunteers with additional assistance from the Waynesboro Generals, the Waynesboro Rotary Club, and parents from visiting swim teams.
Many community establishments are making donations to SMAC to aid in meet Hospitality, keeping volunteers and coaches well fed and hydrated over the weekend. A number officials and coaches will be at the pool in excess of twelve hours per day. They will be enjoying provisions from the following area businesses: Big Apple Bagel, Buffalo Wild Wings, Chick-fil-A, E & J’s Deli Pub, Hershey, Logan’s Roadhouse, McAlister’s Deli, Panera Bread, Plaza Azteca, Starbucks, Stone Soup Books, Virginia Amateur Sports, and the Woodworth Family Kitchen. Hospitality donations have also been received from: Food Lion (Fishersville and Stuarts Draft), Harris Teeter (Crozet), Martins (Staunton and Waynesboro), Target (Waynesboro), and Walmart (Staunton and Waynesboro). Additional support provided by: Best Western PLUS, Waynesboro Landscape & Garden Center, the Waynesboro Family YMCA, Willy’s Ice Cream and Swim & Tri.
SMAC, led by Head Coach Norm Wright, will enter 59 swimmers in the meet, expecting many personal best times from the athletes. In addition to goals of fast times and high place finishes, some SMAC swimmers will be attempting to qualify for championship level meets later in the long course season. Please contact Norm Wright, Director of Competitive Swimming and Aquatics, Waynesboro YMCA, [email protected], or visit www.smacswimmimg.org, to learn more about the SMAC program. Meet Director, Catie Young, [email protected], can answer questions, and provide details and results for the 2014 Subway Commonwealth Games.
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