WCA Winter Short Course Championships 2025 – Event Summary

The Western Cape Aquatics Winter Short Course Championships 2025 is a prestigious swimming gala governed by World Aquatics (WA) and Swimming South Africa (SSA) rules. The event will take place from 17 to 20 July 2025 at the Generations Pool, Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa. It is open to fully registered swimmers from the Western Cape and other provinces who meet the qualification criteria.

Cybersmart Aquatics will be participating throughout the event, with entries submitted by Cybersmart Aquatics coaches for eligible swimmers.

Key Entry Rules:

Scratchings close on Thursday 24 June 2025 — late entries will not be accepted.
All scratchings and withdrawals, both before and during the gala, must be made through the official gala group chat.
Swimmer-to-official ratios must be strictly followed (e.g., 1 timekeeper per 4 swimmers).
Additional entries after the deadline will be charged triple fees as per federation rules.
Swimmers must be fully registered with no overdue invoices.
Clubs must replace officials if parents listed as officials are scratched or absent. If an official doesn’t show up or is improperly clothed, the federation will fine the club; this penalty is passed on to the responsible individual.
Invoices will be sent after initial entry reports.
Swimmers must have qualifying times (Level 3, SANJ & SANAT QT’s), except the 100m IM which may be entered with no-time.
Swimmers must have at least one qualifying time and may enter multiple events.
Only two relay teams per club per event are allowed.
Entry files must be correctly named with the club or district abbreviation and include: athlete entry zip, entry report, fee report, relay report, and officials list.
All officials must be qualified, registered, and correctly attired (white shirts, navy trousers or skirts, closed white shoes).

Competition Format:

Prelims will be swum slowest to fastest in age groups: 11 & under, 12-13, 14-15, 16 & over.
Medals for 200m Butterfly, 400m IM, and 800m/1500m Freestyle will be awarded in age groups: 11-13, 14-15, 16 & over.
The 800m and 1500m events will be swum as mixed heats of the fastest 10 boys and girls.
In 50m events, the fastest 20 swimmers will compete in finals.
Multi-disability swimmers compete in multi-disability events with prelims and finals; prelims swum with able-bodied swimmers.
Only the following training equipment is allowed during warm-up: kickboards and paddles (NO fins).
Lane 1 is allocated to disabled swimmers; lanes 2 & 10 are reserved for dives.
The pool grounds are a no-smoking zone; no alcohol or open flames allowed.

Withdrawals and Penalties:

Swimmers who fail to scratch timeously from a final or prelim will be fined R300; clubs will be invoiced.
Protests may be lodged by team managers within 20 minutes of disqualification announcements with a R500 protest fee.
The referees’ decision is final.
Sessions may combine heats and events depending on entries.

Additional Information:

Tickets: Weekend Adult R400, Weekend Kids R100, Session Adult R70, Session Kids R20.
Each club receives two free programs for team managers and coaches.
Meet Mobile will be activated; results will be unofficial.
Medical support and food vendors will be available on-site.
Team Managers must collect their TM packs before the first session.

Communication and Support:

All gala-related information and coordination will be communicated via Cybersmart Aquatics coaches and official channels. 
📱 Join the official WhatsApp group for WCA SC Champs 2025 updates and coordination:
https://chat.whatsapp.com/BMwexfuDhaD5GYPFVggn9X