Certification

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How to Become a VHSL Official

Swimming Officials are a critical part of the swimming community.  Consider becoming a swimming official as there are many personal benefits of officiating, including an improved knowledge of the sport and creating friendships that last a lifetime.

To become a swim official certified by the Virginia High School League (VHSL), you will need to do the following:

NEW Officials – Registration

  1. Login in https://www.whistle.vhsl.org/
  2. Select “2021-2022 Swim and Dive Registration.”
  3. Select Register.
  4. Begin filling out the application form.
  5. When asked for your USA Swimming Status, choose appropriately. If you are USA Certified now and will be again next year, say Yes, otherwise say NO. Cost difference – $30 for USA certified – $45 for non-USA.
  6. Upon completion of the registration, you will receive a completed notification and an email.
  7. With your registration, the NFHS 2021-22 Swimming Officials’ Guideline manual and Officials card will be mailed to you.

RETURNING Officials – Registration

  1. Login to https://www.whistle.vhsl.org/
  2. Select “2021-2022 Swim and Dive Registration.”
  3. Select Register.
  4. If returning, upon entering your email account it may begin to prepopulate your information, you will need to fill in some of the mandatory fields.
  5. When asked for your USA Swimming Status, choose appropriately – if you are USA Certified now and will be again next year, say Yes, otherwise say NO. Cost difference – $30 for USA certified – $45 for non-USA.
  6. Upon completion of the registration, you will receive a completed notification and an email.
  7. With your registration, the NFHS 2018-19 Swimming Officials’ Guideline manual and Officials card will be mailed to you.

Attend the Online Swimming Clinic

Visit the VHSL website and click on online clinics.  Take the current year VHSL Swim & Dive Rules Clinic for Officials.  The clinic opens in mid-fall.

To complete the training, please note:

  • The training takes approximately one hour to complete.
  • The completion indicator will track your status.
  • All slides must be reviewed and in order; cannot skip ahead.
  • The certificate will be emailed to the email address indicated in your registration.
  • Disable Pop Up blocker from the Brainshark for Certificate/Attachments.
  • It is recommended that you complete the presentation in one sitting. The player will time out after an hour of inactivity.

Test Requirement

All Officials (High School or USA) who wish to be eligible for Conference, Region or State Level events must take and pass the Test.

  • A minimum score of 85% is required.

USA Swimming Officials

*Note Certified Stroke & Turn, Starter and Referee Officials are exempt from the VHSL rules clinic requirement.  However, they must:

  1. Be registered with Virginia Swimming or Potomac Valley Swimming AND with VHSL.
  2. Are ‘recognized’ by VHSL
  3. May work in any position for swimming during the regular season.
  4. Diving Judges and Diving Referees must meet the VHSL clinic requirement.

Not a USA Swim Official?  If you are not a USA certified swim official, you will need to take the Swim Official test.  The test opens in the mid-fall.  To take this test, you will need to have the VHSL Officials booklet.  You should receive the booklet within 2 weeks of filling out the registration form.

* VHSL requires that at a minimum, the Meet Referee and the Starter for all VHSL meets be VHSL-registered officials. 

Visit the VHSL Welcome page for more information.

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