The day you’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived – SwimSwam’s official 2014 U.S. National Championships Pick ‘Em Contest is here! So put those crystal balls* to good use and make your picks. Nike Swim has provided prize packages for all 5 daily winners, plus a big prize bundle for the overall winner of the meet.
*Those with actual working crystal balls are not allowed to enter.
THE GAME
You pick the top four in each event, we give you points. It’s as simple as that. We’ve cut the list off at the top 8 seeds, but have added an “other” option for anyone feeling more daring.
PRIZES
Prize packages will come courtesy of Nike Swim:
Daily winners will win a prize bundle of Nike goggles, swim cap and lanyard.
The overall Grand Prize winner will receive the new Nike swimmer’s backpack, a swim cap, a pair of goggles and a sweatshirt.
SCORING
Our scoring system is the same as it was for men’s and women’s NCAAs this spring, a slightly tweaked system from some of our previous Pick ‘Em Contests:
- 1st – 4 points
- 2nd – 4 points
- 3rd – 3 points
- 4th – 2 points
- Correctly Picking “Other” in correct spot – 3 bonus points, plus earned points
- Successfully predicting a swimmer in the top 4, but in the wrong spot – 1 bonus point
TIE-BREAKER
All ties will be broken by the following order:
- Who had the most 1st place picks correct
- Who had the most 2nd place picks correct
- Who had the most 3rd place picks correct
- Who had the most 4th place picks correct
- Who has the highest overall score (if tie is for a daily prize)
- Drawing of lots
OFFICIAL RULES
Before entering, please read the official rules here. Picks are due for the contest by the time Wednesday’s prelims session begins.
is there a place to see submitted picks? i dont remember mine!
yb – going to try and get a listing posted before finals start.
when i click on the link above i am getting a blank screen.
Braden–
I submitted my picks, however all I am getting on my screen is the Swim Swam homepage in the I-frame where the entries were entered (so two Swim Swam’s). Were my picks received?
Thanks.
I think I got the same screen…
Does accepting a prize affect NCAA amateurism eligibility?
C Martin – that would be something you’d have to ask your compliance officer. The contest is open to everyone in the United States (swimmer or not), and you’re not putting any stake in to participate, so take that information to your compliance officer and they should be able to help you out.
C Martin,
The rule you want to ask about is this.
“10.02.1 Sports Wagering. [#] Sports wagering includes placing, accepting or soliciting a wager (on a staff member’s or student-athlete’s own behalf or on the behalf of others) of any type with any individual or organization on any intercollegiate, amateur or professional team or contest. Examples of sports wagering include, but are not limited to, the use of a bookmaker or parlay card; Internet sports wagering; auctions in which bids are placed on teams, individuals or contests; and pools or fantasy leagues in which an entry fee is required and there is an opportunity to win a prize. (Adopted: 4/26/07 effective 8/1/07)”
Notice it says “in which an… Read more »
AIA’s advice is spot on.
A perfect example of how vastly different the interpretations can be – we have several college swimmers who are writing or have written for us. Some can’t get paid at all. Some can get paid, but only if they write under a fictitious name. Some can do whatever they want. Some can write about high school swimmers, some can’t. Some can do interviews, some can’t. Some can be at meets working for us, some can only do it when there’s no contact involved.
At the end of the day, if it went to the NCAA, there would probably be no consequence. However, not pissing off your compliance person is a key step before testing the… Read more »
Awesome! Playing the contest is much more fun than the prizes, but wanted to say that I never heard from Nike to get my prize for the NCAA contest… Hope they’ll be more on top of it this time.
Jared , i have one serious question ! On day 2 , i came up to the section 50 LCM butterfly with 100 Meters butterly times . Is there just a mistake about 50 been in place of 100 meters ? I beleive so …. bit not completely sure . Great work guys , thanks again for the Meet coverage .
ERVINFORTHEWIN – the 50 meter stroke events are seeded by 100 meter times, since so few U.S. swimmers have times in the 50’s.
Got it ! thanks . The contest is completed ! yahooooooooooooo
Shucks! I cannot enter. Bummer!
Manyi – to be clear, you can enter, you just can’t win a prize – beyond braggin rights, of course. 😉
For the relays, I want to choose “Other” for almost all of the entries, but it will only let me select it once per event. Can this be fixed?