NOVA News
October 16th, 2023
“My child isn’t that competitive, aren’t NOVA meets a weekend long event?” Our bronze groups and coaches are great at building a swimmer’s confidence so they are excited to compete at a swim meet, even if it’s more to see their own progress and not to race the competition. We host multiple meets for lower age and lower level swimmers to provide a better environment for them to grow into the sport.
“Isn’t it a lot of commitment?”
Our younger and intro groups only practice a few times a week. This leaves plenty of time for other extracurricular activities. We have one to two meets a month and in our bronze and silver groups, it’s okay to sign up for just one part of the meet if you have conflicts. Many people appreciate that it’s not every Fall or Spring Saturday morning like a lot of sports. Additionally, there is a three month trial period for first time families.
“There are so many swimmers at NOVA, do they get enough attention from their coach?”
While it varies depending on the group, most 8 and under practices have less than 15 swimmers and at least 2 coaches, most twelve & under practices have about thirty swimmers and two full time coaches. Coaches typically only work with two groups which allows them to give swimmers plenty of attention at practice and meets.
-Wyatt Haas
The Commonwealth Games was held at NOVA June 11-14. The prelim/finals meet was a FAST meet with swimmers of all ages racing hard and supporting each other while having a ton of fun. Swimmers achieved new best times, time standards and even some team records. A huge "Thank you" to the facilities staff for the support through the storms and delays.
Age Group Dev. Silver, Age Group Dev. Gold, Age Group Silver, Age Group Gold, Senior Dev. Silver, Senior Dev. Gold, Senior Bronze, Senior Silver, Senior Gold, National
NOVA Families -
We have 35 days remaining until the last day of practice for most of our groups. It has been a fantastic year with the opening of the second floor, the addition of high speed wifi, finishing a community room for team events, finishing a weight room for the senior program, and beginning to offer some hot food options during swim meets.
We also have 35 days to raise the remaining $160,000 to finish the Elevate campaign. That is 160 more families who can add their name to the wall with a $1000 gift to NOVA.
Those remaining funds will allow NOVA to add FREE live streaming to every one of our home swim meets. It will allow us to sell COFFEE and SMOOTHIES from a finished concessions space. It will allow us to host more state wide events, keeping your swimmers in Richmond and out of hotels all year long.
Please donate today - we cannot do this without the help of EVERY NOVA family.
With Gratitude,
Julie Farney
SDG Pool, Pickleball and Pizza Party 6/19
VBLA Ocean Swim 6/21
Central District LC Champs 6/25-28
Virginia LC Senior Champs 7/9-7/12 entry deadline 6/28 commit HERE
SDS Pool and Pizza Party 7/10 RSVP by 7/7 commit HERE
Virginia LC Age Group Champs 7/16-7/19 entry deadline 7/5 commit HERE
NCSA Summer Juniors 7/22-7/26
NOVA's 2026 Long Course meet schedule is posted to the NOVA website HERE!
Abigail Bonham, Mia Eubank, Lane Francis, and Owen Miklos earned the opportunity at NCSA Juniors in March to compete for the NCSA All Star team in London this May. After returning home we sat them down to get their perspective on their experience.
How does a swimmer get the opportunity to go to London?
Coach Alex- At the spring NSCA Juniors a swimmer must finish either first or second in an individual race to qualify for the NCSA All-Star International Team.
What events did you swim at the meet?
Lane - I did the 50, 100, 200 back, 50, 100, 200 free, 400 medley relay, and 400 free relay.
Mia- I swam the 800 free, 400 free, 200 fly, 400 IM, and 200 back
Abigail - I did the 400 free, 50, 100, 200 breast, 200 and 400 IM, 400 medley relay
Owen - I swam the 1500, 400 free, 200 free, 200 fly, and 100 fly.
How was the Team Travel experience different from NOVA’s Team Travel?
Mia- The team travel experience was actually very similar to NOVA’s as everything was very organized and thoroughly planned out.
Owen - The team travel experience was different than NOVA’s since we were with mostly new people and coaches we’ve never talked to before the trip. Also we had team dinners, one at the beginning and end of the trip, which is something we could do more of as a team.
What was your favorite swimming experience from the meet?
Lane - My favorite swimming experience was my medal ceremony after my 100 back. Standing next to Olympians from all over the world was something I’ll never forget.
Abigail - My favorite swimming experience from London was getting the chance to swim in the super final. Getting to swim with some really fast girls really challenged me physically and mentally. I feel like this moment helped me improve as a swimmer, preparing me for my other big meets this summer.
How was the food?
Mia- The food wasn’t the best, but the staff made an effort to give us the best selection of food by going to the store frequently and getting us healthy snacks. The dinner was the best in my opinion because there were options like fish or pasta.
Owen- The food at the hotel was pretty good but the only protein was fish and occasionally chicken. I would have liked to see a bit more chicken and have steak as an option a few times.
What did you get to see in London?
Lane - We saw the London Bridge, the Big Ben Tower, and Westminster Abbey. Swimming in the 2012 Olympic pool at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park was really cool too.
Abigail - We got to go on a boat tour and see London Bridge and the Big Ben Tower. Later on that week a tour guide showed us around Westminster Abbey where we got to see the Coronation chair and over 3,000 tombs for royal people.
Did you get any Swag?
Owen - We received some hoodies, a pair of sweatpants, a tech suit, and a lot of shirts. The best thing we got was a puffer jacket.
Mia- We got lots of swag from the NCSA team. We got a bag, a tech suit, 3 sweatshirts, 2 caps, pants, and a ton of T-shirts.
How was living and training with a totally new group of swimmers and coaches?
Lane - It was really fun getting to know other swimmers from all over the country and make new friends. I got to bond with swimmers that I had swum against but never talked to before. The coaches were super energetic and brought a lot of excitement to the meet and training. I also got to meet a lot of cool people from other teams, like a Czech Paralympian and a British Olympic medalist.
Abigail - I really enjoyed getting to meet new friends who were supportive! I was surprised how quickly I created so many bonds, especially my roommate who is now one of my really close friends. I was nervous going into a new meet with new coaches, but these were some of the greatest coaches I’ve had because of how caring they were for every swimmer. They made sure every swimmer felt seen during practice and after races.
What was your biggest takeaway from the whole experience?
Lane - This meet was a great introduction to representing Team USA. The team culture was unlike anything else I’d ever experienced before. Representing my country made me feel like I was a part of something way bigger than just myself. It was really a great reminder of how hard work and dedication can lead to amazing opportunities like this.
Mia- The biggest takeaway for me was learning how to stay confident and trust my training while competing at an international level. I felt incredible support from my teammates on the NCSA team and it showed me how one meet can bring athletes together and create many friendships..
Owen - My biggest take away from the meet is that a bad event shouldn’t determine the rest of your meet. I added 4 seconds in my 400 free in the morning and didn’t feel very good at all. However, I didn’t doubt myself and remembered that fly is a completely different stroke, and then I had a great 200 fly that evening.
Abigail - My biggest takeaway from the experience was gaining confidence in myself while racing at an international level. Representing Team USA was an incredible honor and experience that not many get. I also enjoyed meeting new people and learning from different coaches, which helped me grow both as an athlete and as a person. Overall, the experience made me more confident and motivated for future competitions!
Short Course District Champs 12 and under February 12-14, 2027, NOVA-Regency
Short Course District Champs 13 and over February 26-28, 2027, NOVA-Regency
Virginia Senior Champs March 4-7, 2027, CSAC
Virginia Age Group Champs March 11-14, 2027 CSAC
NCSA Juniors March 16-20, 2027 Orlando FL
NCSA Age Group Champs March 24-27, 2027 Orlando FL
