Since the first Olympics in Athens, sports have been a way to bring people together, creating a bond through competition. Athletics allow a sense of community and commonality, creating relationships that push one both as a competitor and a person. Summer-league swimming, especially in Cherry Hill, continues to foster such relationships and qualities as the 2025 season unfolds.
Founded in 1956, the Tri-County Swimming Pool Association (TCSPA) provides local children from as young as five or six to graduating high school seniors the opportunity to experience the pleasures of summer-league swimming. Composed of 33 clubs across Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties, athletes participate in a season spanning from late May to early August.
Teams typically start early-season training in the week following Memorial Day, with most practices scheduled for after school. However, as the academic year comes to an end, teams tend to shift to morning sessions, with some clubs even incorporating dryland exercises and runs into their schedules. Practices are based on age and skill level. There are five age groups — 8 & Under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and 15-18 — that are combined for training according to the individual club’s goals.
Preceding the start of the competitive season, most teams host time trials in order to gain a full scope of their swimmers’ abilities and speed. This allows coaches to determine their line-up as the regular season begins.
This year, swim meets and competitions started the week of June 15. Every Saturday for five weeks, teams compete in a competitive A-Meet, in which they face off against another club in their division. Spanning from A to F, with divisions ranging from best to worst, clubs face many challenges when matching up against teams of similar abilities. Each meet is approached with one goal in mind: Division Championships. Every year, the leading team in the division is able to progress to a higher one, being crowned the Division Champion and moving into a new realm of competition.
During each A-Meet, there are 66 events that pit swimmers of the same age group and genders against each other. Event distances vary based on such factors, from 25-meter events for 8 & Unders to the 200-meter Individual Medley for 15-18 Boys. First place scores five points, second place earns three points, and third place receives one point. In addition to individual events, teams also form freestyle and medley relays with their top four freestylers and swimmers in each stroke accordingly. Additional B & C relays may be created in order to allow for higher participation. First place scores seven points for their team.
In addition to official matches, B-Meets are non-competitive dual meets that act as an exhibition, meaning that a winner is not always calculated, qualifying times cannot be obtained, disqualifications are not valid, and events do not contribute to a division standing.
Following the 5-week regular season are the championship meets: Cherry Bowl & Tri-County.
The annual town-wide Cherry Bowl comes first. At the event, all 12 Cherry Hill swim clubs compete for the title of the Cherry Bowl Champion. This event is not part of TCSPA, yet it creates an atmosphere of sportsmanship and camaraderie for Cherry Hill’s athletes. Last year, Erlton won, with Fox Hollow earning second place and Wexford third. This year, the event takes place on July 26 at Willowdale Swim Club.
The Tri-County Swimming Burt German Championships wrap up the season. This ultimate championship meet spans two days and many sessions, and is viewed as a final test of a team’s strength, both mentally and physically. Swimmers must earn qualifying times to compete individually, but top relays also participate, with the overall Tri-County Champion crowned at the end of the meet. This year, Tri-County takes place at Pomona Swim Club on August 2nd and 3rd.
While Tri-County Swimming is immensely competitive, the true impact of swimming on the youth of South Jersey lies not just in time drops and wins — it involves the community behind the athlete. Every pep rally, every dryland, every early-morning practice, and every relay helps to shape children as they spend time with their team. As they age from little 6-year-olds to 18-year-olds moving onto college, looking to the future that swimming helped them form, these athletes grow in character, surrounded by memories of late nights at the pool and grueling kick sets with their teammates.
In the end, that is what swimming is all about: the sportsmanship, the perseverance, the laughter, the losses, and—most of all—the ability to form friendships for children as they grow up together, creating bonds to last a lifetime.