Whether your swimmer is just beginning their competitive journey in the Southeastern LSC or working toward their next big breakthrough, our core philosophy at MCSC is centered on long-term, individual athlete development. We believe that swimming is a personal journey where the most important competition is the one against the clock. To help our swimmers set meaningful goals and celebrate their ongoing progress, we use the USA Swimming motivational time standards. Below, you will find a breakdown of how these national benchmarks work and how we use them to build confident, well-rounded athletes who love the sport.

Understanding USA Swimming Time Standards

USA Swimming establishes age group motivational time standards on a four-year basis, typically aligned with the Olympic cycle. These standards (categorized as B, BB, A, AA, AAA, and AAAA) are one metric that we use to monitor progress in our sport.

At MCSC, we use these standards primarily as a roadmap for goal setting and personal development. While they also help USA Swimming regulate the size of championship meets by requiring faster standards for higher-level events, their greatest value to our club is providing a structured way to track your swimmer’s individual progress over time.

What Do the Letters Mean?

These motivational standards are determined by national percentiles. They give us a clear, mathematical metric of how a time ranks across the entire country for a specific age group, sex, stroke, and distance:

• AAAA (98th Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 2% nationally.
• AAA (94th Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 6% nationally.
• AA (92nd Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 8% nationally.
• A (85th Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 15% nationally.
• BB (65th Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 35% nationally.
• B (45th Percentile): The swimmer's time is in the top 55% nationally.

A Focus on Personal Growth

It is common for swimmers to have different time standards for different strokes, or even different standards for the same stroke at varying distances. A swimmer might hold an "A" time in backstroke but be working through the "B" standards in breaststroke. As swimmers grow and mature, their best strokes and preferred distances will likely evolve. Because different athletes experience physical maturation at different rates, early success (such as achieving "AA" times as a 10 & Under) does not automatically guarantee the same level of success as an older, more advanced swimmer. For this reason, MCSC recommends that swimmers avoid specializing in one specific event too early. Training and competing in all strokes and distances builds a complete athlete, improving both physical capability and mental resilience.

Enjoying the Journey

Ultimately, time standards are a tool for self-motivation. However, a swimmer's development should never be reduced solely to meeting a time standard. Every athlete at MCSC is an individual with unique abilities who will progress at their own distinct pace. Focusing on personal growth rather than comparing times to teammates or others is the healthiest, most productive way to approach the sport. Let your swimmers enjoy the journey, celebrate their personal bests, and trust the process as they develop throughout their swimming career.