The Falls Pointe Piranhas is a swim team affiliated with the South West Swim League. We were created in 2000 by a small group of local families looking to provide an environment for young swimmers to develop fitness, personal growth, goal setting, and team spirit. We started with 36 registered swimmers and now have more than 100.

Our team emphasizes the personal growth that occurs through training and competition. We focus on developing integrity, responsibility and commitment – skills that serve team members for a lifetime. Our philosophy is that swimming is a wonderful tool to develop character traits that allows youngsters to have success in competition and then translate this success into their lives.

Don't worry if you're new to competitive swimming. The sport can seem overwhelming at first, but after a few meets, you'll be a pro!

Here are some basics you should know:

The four competitive strokes are freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly.

Events are held in all of the competitive strokes at varying distances depending on the age group of the swimmer. Other swimming events include relays, which consist of a group of four swimmers who either all swim freestyle in a “freestyle relay” or each swim one of the four competitive strokes in a “medley relay.”

Each swimmer may compete in one to four events during a meet. Coaches may tell the kids at that morning’s practice what events they’ll swim, but this can – and does – change right up to the start of the event.

You do not need to be an experienced competitor to join our team. The Falls Pointe Piranhas Swim Team is open to children ages 5-18.  18 year olds who graduated in the current year are eligible.

New swimmers age 12 and under must pass a swim test. Swimmers must be able swim one lap unassisted without stopping (no holding on to lane lines, etc.). Coaches will help with stroke development, and the regular practices ensure that kids get stronger as the summer progresses.

Falls Pointe residents and returning swimmers will be provided the first opportunity to register and remaining spots will be open to residents of the Olmsted Falls City School District.

Children ages 9 and under practice Monday through Friday from 9:00 - 10:00 am

Swimmers age 10 may attend either practice time.

Children ages 11 and up practice Monday through Friday from 10:00 - 11:00 am

Practices begin in early June (the day after school lets out) and go through mid to late July.

Friday practices include fun team building games in the pool and donuts!

The summer season is a very short one and we are at the mercy of the weather. It is important your child attend as many scheduled practices as he/she is able. Coaches will give priority at meets to swimmers that regularly attend practice, but we certainly understand that summer is a busy time. Please notify the team of planned absences for vacations and conflicts to allow proper planning.

For emergencies and sickness, if your child is unable to attend a swim meet it is important to notify the team as soon as possible.   When your swimmer misses a meet with little/no notice, your child’s scheduled events are not the only races affected. If your child was scheduled in a relay event and cancels or doesn’t show up, three other swimmers will be prevented from swimming.

Parents are required to RSVP for all swim meets in advance.  Please be sure to RSVP for each swimmer by the deadline provided for your child to be assigned event races.

Last minute swim meet drops are very challenging for our coaching staff and affect other swimmers opportunities to swim in events.  We ask our parents to provide an accurate RSVP for your attendance.

If a swimmer is not signed up, it is assumed they will not attend the swim meet and our coaching staff will not assign them a spot in the line-up.   If your swimmer is not signed up by the deadline and would like to swim, please notify the swim board ASAP.There is a chance we can add them for one individual free-style race.

Falls Pointe Swim Team does not see the first place person as the only winner. We would rather look to see who behaves like a winner. There are certain characteristics of a winner, and every swimmer, no matter where they place, has the opportunity to emulate those winner characteristics: concentration, listening skills, and working towards goals.

In competition, the important measure is not who collected the most medals or even who improved the most time. The real critical measure is who learned the most from the competitive experience. Swimmers quickly forget the medals, record times and other material benefits as they get older. They will, however, remember the development of interpersonal skills, discipline, listening skills, time management, goal setting and enhanced self-image.

To help everyone remember the real goals of our swim team and set expectations about behavior, we ask that all swimmers agree to our Code of Conduct as part of registration.

The team is run by parent volunteers and is financially self-supporting.  In a typical season, we have more than 125 volunteer spots to fill.   It is a requirement to sign up for a minimum of 3 volunteer opportunities per family.  We always welcome additional support!

If you’ve never been to a swim meet or volunteered at one, don’t worry! Jobs are simple and our team members will provide directions. You’ll be a veteran swim parent in no time!

Volunteer opportunities for swim meets include:

• Announcer:  Use microphone and speaker system to announce races.

• Set-Up: Set-up chairs, tables, pool deck, direct parking, check in swimmers, and guide guests upon arrival.

• Concessions: Sell food & drinks at the concession stand. You can decide how to split the meet with your co-volunteer(s) for breaks to watch your child's events.  

• Clerk of Course: The "Clerk of Course" is the area where the swimmers gather before their events. You'll help line  swimmers up in order as they wait for their race.  You will work  with the coaches and opposing teams Clerk of Course prior to the meet to assign lanes.

• Timers: Stand at the pool where the race will end and use a stop watch (provided by the team) to time the swimmer in their lane. A timer meeting will be held before the meet with the officials.  

• Scorers: Stay seated at a table where you add up the times from each event and average these times with a calculator. Every few races, you take these scores into the person scoring the meet on the computer.  

• Awards: Put labels on the respective ribbons (1st thru 6th place) earned by the Piranhas swimmers. Each label has the swimmer, their time, and placement. The ribbons are given to the coaches for distribution at practice.  

The registration fee will be $115 per swimmer.  These fees include all practices, team events, meets, and a team T-shirt. They do not include the team swimsuit or other optional accessories such as googles, swim cap, towels, or desired team apparel, etc.

Payment is due by the deadline or your spot will be given to a swimmer on the waitlist.

Falls Pointe residents MUST have their association dues paid and be in good standing with the Home Owners Association to participate.