Swimming: Long Course Championships 2024-25 (Part of BUCS Nationals)

Tuesday 14 January 2025 at 23:59 – Student/Competitor Deadline 
(Students / Competitors must apply by this deadline) 

Thursday 16 January 2025 at 23:59 – Institution Administrator Approval Deadline 
(Institutional Administrators are given 48 hours after the student / competitor deadline to approve entries and assign students to relay teams)

This competition will NOT operate a staged entry process. As such, please ensure all entries are submitted through BUCS Play prior to the closing date listed above.  

50m Freestyle (Open/Male and Female) 
100m Freestyle (Open/Male and Female) 
200m Freestyle (Open/Male and Female) 
400m Freestyle* HDW (Open/Male and Female) 
800m Freestyle** HDW (Open/Male and Female) 
1500m Freestyle** HDW (Open/Male and Female) 
50m Breaststroke (Open/Male and Female) 
100m Breaststroke (Open/Male and Female) 
200m Breaststroke (Open/Male and Female) 
50m Butterfly (Open/Male and Female) 
100m Butterfly (Open/Male and Female) 
200m Butterfly (Open/Male and Female) 
50m Backstroke (Open/Male and Female) 
100m Backstroke (Open/Male and Female) 
200m Backstroke (Open/Male and Female) 
200m Individual Medley (Open/Male and Female) 
400m Individual Medley* HDW (Open/Male and Female) 
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay (Open/Male and Female) 
4 x 100m Medley Relay (Open/Male and Female) 
4 x 100m Mixed Medley Relay (Mixed) 

Please find a copy of the programme of events here or under the important documents heading on the event page. 

*Entry Qualifying Time (EQT) applies 
** Entry Qualifying Time applies & only the top 30 entrants will be accepted (800m & 1500m Free) 
For the 800m and 1500m entry times will be verified by Swim England rankings for validity and may be rejected if validity cannot be approved.  

The BUCS Long Course Swimming Championships 2025 are required to adhere to the Swim England Transgender policy. As such, the categories available shall be ‘Open’ and ‘Female’. For more information, please see the Swim England Transgender Policy.  

The Female category is for birth sex females in accordance with Swim England’s Transgender and Non-Binary Competition Policy. By entering the ‘Female’ category, a swimmer confirms that their birth sex is female.  

The BUCS category Open will be defined as Open/Male as is commonplace in all swimming events in the UK. 

Institutions may enter up to: 
Three competitors per individual event. 
Two teams per relay event. 

All entrants are limited to three individual events.  

It may become necessary to restrict entries if the entries exceed capacity. If required, rejections will be made after the closing date at the discretion of the BUCS Swimming Event Team. Should it be necessary to restrict entries, accepted entries will be prioritised based on entry time. 

Up to a maximum of 30 entrants based on verified entry times will be accepted in the 800m Freestyle and 1500m Freestyle. 

Heats 
Heats will be swum in two sessions, fastest heats followed by the remaining heats. The exact split will be determined by the overall number of entries and will be advised in the Event Information & shown on the Start Lists.  
HDW events will have their fastest heat in the final session, with the remaining heats split across Heats Sessions A & B. 

Finals 
10 Lanes will be used for Finals. 
There will be A & B Finals for all 50, 100, and 200m events. 
The top 10 swimmers/teams will advance to A finals and the next 10 to the B final. 
Guest entrants may not progress to a final. 

Long course entry times MUST be submitted for all events. 
Conversions from short course are permitted. 

Times should reflect current fitness and either be an official time from the last 12 months or from a time trial within the last 6 months. Please do not enter historic PBs as this will lead to swimmers being seeded incorrectly. 

Time trials may be used for relay entry times. 

CONSIDERATION TIMES 
In individual events all entrants must meet the consideration/entry qualifying times for the event they are entering. Entries outside of these will be rejected 

Achieving the consideration time permits the entry to be made but does not guarantee that entry as entries may be restricted based on event capacity. If swimmers fail to achieve the consideration time at the event they will be fined if they cannot prove achieving the consideration time within 12 months of the event.  

ENTRY QUALIFYING TIMES 
The following Entry Qualifying Times (EQT) that swimmers must have achieved for the events over 200m: 

Entry time submitted for events with a qualification time must have been achieved in a competitive environment in the last 12 months prior to the competition and may be verified against Swim England rankings. You may also be asked to verify your time on request prior to or at the event. Failure to validate your entry time may mean that you are not able to participate in the event or you may face disciplinary action or a fine if you swim outside of your entry time and slower than the Qualifying Time. 

Entries by swimmers with times outside of these times will be rejected. 

Para-swimmers are permitted to enter recognised para events for their classification as listed below (in line with events currently being swum in Great Britain for para-swimmers) and are required to meet the consideration times outlined below.  

Eligible entrants in these events can, earn BUCS Points, BUCS Medals and Swimming Event Points, as part of multi-classification extracted results using British Para-Swimming Points, only when the minimum number of participants have competed, as per BUCS Reg 6.1.2.1.7 and 6.2.2.4.  

If any para swimmer enters an event which their classification is not eligible for, they will be required to meet the consideration or qualifying times for non-para swimmers for that event, these can be found here and below:

Open/Male 

Female  

Para Swimmers must be Nationally/Internationally classified and have a CURRENT classified status. Eligibility is defined below: 

• C (Confirmed) = Eligible  

• FRD (Fixed Review Date) =Eligible for up to 12 months post date. 

• R (Review) - Needs to be Classified/ Seen next swim - Ineligible for medal or BUCS Para Points but can enter and participate as a para swimmer. 

Swimmers with any other classification status are ineligible and unable to swim as para athlete but can enter not as a para athlete providing they meet the consideration times required. 

For more information on para swimmers’ classification status, please visit: 
https://www.britishswimming.org/performance/para-swimming/classification/classification-status/  

Specific Requirements: 

• If you have any specific requirements for competing e.g. Strobe lights, use of 'tappers' etc. please advise Joseph Gallimore in advance of the event. 

•  Any swimmer requiring the use of tapping devices, blackened goggles or starting devices MUST have these signed off at the Technical Briefing for them to be used during the Championships. 

In line with World Para Swimming Rules and Regulations (Regulation 5.1.2) any World Record swims will not be recognised at BUCS Short Course Swimming Championships.  

S15 swimmers are eligible to enter any event and earn BUCS medals and points as per Appendix 1 but must meet the entry consideration and qualification times of non-para swimmers. 

A secondary strobe light will be available for athletes with a hearing impairment. 

If the championships are not oversubscribed BUCS has the right to accept guest entries from individuals not from BUCS member institutions that meet the following criteria: 

The swimmer is aiming for selection on a national team; and/or 

The relevant National Governing Body submits the entry; and 

BUCS receives the entry form and fee by the closing date. 

Guest entrants may only compete in three individual events in heats only and may not progress to the finals.  

BUCS member institutions may not have guest entries, any of their students must swim as part of their team’s entry allowance (see above). 

British Swimming will be emailing out separate information relating to guest swimmers on their elite swimming list in due course. If you want to enter as a guest and are not part of the British Swimming programme, please email Joe Gallimore.  

The top three swimmers/teams in each event including Para Events will receive medals according to the BUCS medal policy.   

Awards will be made to the Open and Female Top Performers & Open and Female Top Para Swimmer Performers.  

Institutions will score ‘Swimming Points’ and will be ranked and awards will be made to the highest ranked Open Team, Female Team & Overall Team.  

Para Teams will be ranked, and an overall list will be published.   

Individual Events: 

To apply for the competition all eligible competitors must follow these steps:  

1. Competitor to apply to the event on BUCS Play (Instructions on how to do this can be found here)  

2. Institution administrator approves entry (Instructions on how to do this can be found here)  

3. BUCS approves/denies entry into competition and publishes confirmed entry list  

Any data will be handled in accordance with BUCS Privacy Policy  

By participating in this event you agree to adhere to BUCS General Event Disclaimer  

To check whether you are eligible to compete in BUCS competitions, please visit REG 4 Individual Eligibility.   

Relay Events: 

To apply for this competition: 

1. Entries will need to be submitted via the team entries section of our online entry system, BUCS Play (Instructions on how to do this can be found here) 

2. Please speak to your Institution Administrator as they will need to enter the correct number of teams for you. 

3. Competitors then need to apply for the respective event. (Instructions on how to do this can be found here) 

4. Institution Administrators must assign competitors to the correct team during the approval process. (Instructions on how to do this can be found here) 

Any data will be handled in accordance with BUCS Privacy Policy 

By participating in this event you agree to adhere to BUCS General Event Disclaimer 

To check whether you are eligible to compete in BUCS competitions, please visit REG 4 Individual Eligibility. 

No entries will be accepted after the entry closing deadline under any circumstances.  

If a competitor experiences issues entering via the BUCS Play app before the deadline of 12 January 2025 this must be reported through BUCS App Support. Any issues that have not been brought to BUCS’ attention before this deadline will not be considered for entry. 

BUCS Points will be awarded as per Appendix 1 and Reg 6 along with the following: 

• Only the top 2 swimmers from each institution or 1 team per institution for relay events will score points e.g. If three swimmers from the same institution finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd, only 1st and 2nd would receive BUCS Points and 3rd and 4th place points would be pushed down to the next eligible swimmer from a different institution.

The entry lists will be published on the BUCS website by 5pm Friday 31 January 2025 for checking. 

All entries MUST be checked, with errors you wish to be corrected being reported by 5pm Thursday 6 February 2025 your Athletic Union to the event lead. 

Any changes to entry information are subject to a £10 admin fee. 

No late entries under any circumstances can be accepted. 

Any requests for changes made at the event will not be made. 

After entries have closed no refunds will be given for withdrawals. This applies regardless of the reason for a withdrawal. 

Withdrawals can be made as follows: 

Pre Event by email for all events up until 11:00 Tuesday 13 February 2025 

Friday’s Events – Deadline 11:00 Tuesday 13th February 2025 (by email) 
Saturday’s Events – Deadline 11:00 Friday 14th February 2025 (at Helpdesk) 
Sunday’s Events – Deadline 11:00 Saturday 15th February 2025 (at Helpdesk) 

There will be fines for withdrawals made after the date above or for failing to swim in heats or finals. 
Details of these fines will be in the Event Guide.

Being registered with a governing body is not a requirement to compete in the BUCS Swimming Championships. However, registered swimmers of Swim England, Scottish Swimming or Swim Wales who wish for their times to be submitted for British Swimming ranking purposes must provide their governing body number when registering on BUCS Play, as well as checking that the name and date of birth matches that on your governing body registration. 

For para-swimmers to be eligible for disability points and awards they must be nationally/internationally classified and have a current classification status (see para entrants tab for more information) 

• Swimming membership number (if you have one) 

• Entry Time 

• Entry times MUST be submitted for all events. These should be Long Course times or conversions from Short Course times. 

• Please write the PB in number format HH:MM:SS.MS. For example: 00:02:21.59 – represents 0 hours, 2 minutes, 21 seconds and 59 milliseconds). Any entries made putting 00:00:00.00 (or any other zero-time format) will be rejected.  

• Entries made with times that are not appropriate/in the correct format for the event will also be rejected. If you do not have an official time, please submit a time trial time – This includes relay entries. 

• Are you a para swimmer? (drop down yes or no) If yes, you will be asked: 

• S classification 

• SB classification  

• SM classification 

• Exemption codes 

• URL proof – e.g. link to your profile on NGB or WPS website to demonstrate your classification 

• Classification Status (drop down Confirmed, Review, Fixed Review Date) 

If you are having any problems with the BUCS Play app please contact BUCS App Support before the deadline. Any issues that have not been brought to BUCS’ attention before this deadline will not be considered for entry. 

This will be released two weeks prior to the competition date. 

Due to the warm up restrictions the schedule & event timings will be published in the event guide. This will allow the exact timings to be set around the actual entries and for as many swimmers to participate as possible. 

BUCS’ mission is to provide exceptional student sporting experiences that inspire, develop and unite.  

Critical to our success is our commitment to always providing safe, friendly and enjoyable environments for all participants. Whether competing, coaching, officiating, volunteering, working or spectating at these events, the welfare of all is critical to our mission.  

To find out more or report a concern, please click here.  

BUCS are delighted to announce two supporting partners of Nationals 2025:  

• New Balance – shop the look and grab your Nationals 2025 merchandise!   

• Milk Every Moment – a campaign showcasing the nutritional value of milk for sports students  

As BUCS’ kit provider, New Balance are giving you as BUCS athletes the chance to access a range of bespoke and personalised Nationals 2025 kit. To purchase this new range, please head to the online shop here or during the event at the New Balance merchandise stands.  

Milk Every Moment is a campaign showcasing milk, the timeless classic in your fridge, it is more than just a beverage, it's a nutritional powerhouse. Loaded with essential nutrients, it's a top-notch source of high-quality protein, all you need to build and repair muscles after a workout. Whether you're gearing up for your race or looking to recover post event, take a look at the website for more information and useful recipes.  

Both partners are excited to be supporting you as you take on a thrilling weekend of sport. You will find Milk Every Moment ambassadors located across all venues during the event, where they'll be offering the opportunity to win some exclusive giveaways. You can also find further information about our partners on the official event webpage.