UCLA swim and dive prep for Pac-12, NCAA championships

The championship season is upon the UCLA swim and dive team. This will create changes in training and competition for the Bruins.

The Bruins only have one dual meet remaining, against USC on Feb. 17. Other than that, they will be looking forward to the Pac-12 championships and NCAA championships.

Differences in competition style will require changes in the Bruins in terms of training. Swim coach Cyndi Gallagher said that most of the women will be tapering their training for the Pac-12s and others will be tapering their training for the NCAAs.

According to Gallagher, these changes in training will feature less weight training and less intensity in the pool at practice.

The competition style will also be changing. According to dive coach Tom Stebbins, championship meets will require much more preparation.

“I think that we train to compete at a level that is commensurate with what their abilities are. Dual meets don’t offer nearly the same level of preparation like an invite does,” Stebbins said.

Stebbins also spoke about how much longer invite meets will be than dual meets. According to Stebbins, there will be much more downtime between dives because of the number of competitors.

The length and size of the championship meets are something that will affect the swimmers as well, according to Gallagher.

“Pac-12s is a four-day meet. There can’t be any highs and can’t be any lows. It is just a lot of races and a lot of swims and they will have to keep their emotions in check,” Gallagher said.

Despite these future challenges, the Bruins are very excited for the regular season to wind down, according to junior freestyle and breaststroke swimmer Jessica Khojasteh.

“I think the team is really excited for the rest of the season because the championship part of the season is coming up,” Khojasteh said.