Peace Haven Dolphins

How to Read a Heat Sheet

What is a Heat Sheet?

A heat sheet is a "meet program" created for each swim meet that will include all participating swimmers from each competing team, what events they are swimming as well as their heat and lane number. This guide will help you to identify ahead of time what events your swimmer is swimming during the meet and generally when these events will occur.

Heat Sheet facts...

• The heat sheet will always display in the same order for each meet and events are listed #1 through #84. 42 different events are paired for age/gender (ie Event #1 6U Girls Freestyle Relay and Event #2 6U Boys Freestyle Relay).
• Each stroke will have several events specific for age group and gender (ie. Girls 6U 25 yd Backstroke, Boys 6U 25 yd Backstroke, Girls 7-8 25 yd Backstroke, Boys 7-8 25 yd Backstroke...). Girls will always swim their events before boys.
• A max of 6 swimmers can compete per heat. If more than 6 swimmers are entered into an event, there will be multiple "heats" of that event. Heats will be assigned and ordered so that the fastest swimmers will swim in the FIRST heat.
• Lane assignments are typically alternated for home and away athletes (home in 2, 4, 6 - away in 1, 3, 5) with the fastest seeded swimmers in the middle lanes. If there are not equal number of swimmers from each team, they may be swimming next to their own teammates.
• The Seed Time" listed on the heat sheet represents a swimmer's previous best time for that event. "NT" indicates that they have "no time" registered to date. Seed times are a good way to see how your swimmer stacks up against the competition but it also serves as a goal. Beating a seed time means establishing a new personal best, regardless of how your swimmer places against the competition.
• Heat sheets cannot be compiled until the visiting team has submitted their entries to the host team. The host team will merge the files and finalize the heat sheet. Once completed, it is forwarded to the visiting team and then posted to the website and sent out as an announcement.
• Only a limited number of paper heat sheets will be available at the meet. We encourage you to print a copy at home to bring with you to the meet. *Highlighting your swimmer/s names in all of their events before you arrive is recommended.