---
title: "Swimming officials’ roles: who decides and who to ask"
description: "Swimming officials’ roles cover the start, strokes, turns, times and places; the referee makes the race decision. Parents take questions through the club’s meet delegate."
url: "https://swimtrack.ai/blog/who-is-who-on-deck/"
lang: "en"
author: "SwimTrack"
publisher: "SwimTrack"
license: "Free to read and quote with attribution to SwimTrack. Not for resale. https://swimtrack.ai/terms/"
published: 2026-09-21
pillar: "parent-role"
audience: "parent"
---

# Swimming officials’ roles: who decides and who to ask

Swimming officials’ roles cover the start, strokes, turns, times and places; the referee makes the race decision. Parents take questions through the club’s meet delegate.

> **Idea in Brief**
> - **The juiz-árbitro is in charge.** The referee leads the officials and decides matters not assigned elsewhere.
> - **Each official covers a set area.** They pass on times, places, absences, or rule reports.
> - **Parents use the club route.** Questions go through the *delegado à prova* (meet delegate), never an official in white.

An official raises an arm beside the blocks while adults in white stand at each end and along both sides. From the stands, it can look as if they’re all making the same call. They aren’t. Each has a named job and set jurisdiction, with the *juiz-árbitro* at the top.

That outstretched arm is part of a written start sequence. Short whistles tell swimmers to get ready at the starting end. One long whistle puts them on the blocks. For backstroke and medley relays, the first long whistle sends them into the water. A second brings them to the starting position. The referee then holds an arm towards the *juiz de partidas* (starter). Control passes to the starter until the race begins. The order matters because a swimmer who leaves before the signal may be disqualified; [that process belongs to another rule](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/when-they-get-disqualified).

The *juiz-árbitro* (referee) controls the technical officials, applies the rules, and decides any matter not assigned elsewhere. The starter decides whether a start was fair, subject to the referee. At an FPN national championship in 2026/27, protests follow another route. The referee sits on the *júri da competição* (competition jury) with the *Diretor da Competição* (competition director) and one member of the FPN’s technical department. That jury rules on protests and other matters tied to the meet.

The other officials each cover a smaller area. The *juízes de estilos* (stroke judges) stand along both sides. The *juízes de viragens* (turn inspectors) cover one lane at each end. Both report rule breaches to the referee. The *juízes de chamadas* (call room judges) gather swimmers before each race and report anyone absent. The starter reports false starts. The *juízes de chegada* (finish judges) report places. The *chefe de cronometristas* (chief timekeeper) runs the *cronometristas* (timekeepers). ANDS gives these Portuguese labels. The February 2026 World Aquatics rules give the current duties and staffing.

You may not see lane timekeepers when automatic timing is running because the machine times the race. Without automatic or semi-automatic equipment, the current rules require two timekeepers per lane and at least one reserve. Their chief collects the cards and records each lane’s official time. In Portugal, this is decided meet by meet. The ANDL board makes that decision for its competitions, and its 2025/26 calendar marks both electronic and manual meets. At the XIX Troféu Cidade Caldas da Rainha Cadetes in March 2025, a district council supplied the officials and timing was manual.

The *secretariado* (meet office) handles club paperwork. At every FPN national championship in 2026/27, clubs may change relay teams there up to one hour before a session. The *mesa de controlo* (control desk) handles officials’ results. Officials aren’t freelancers. In Leiria, the *Conselho Distrital de Arbitragem* (district officiating council) runs each meet’s officiating and calls up every judge. Each needs the council's authority and current *filiação* (registration). ANDL district rules reserve poolside for *árbitros* (officials) during racing. Parents approach nobody in white. Meet questions go to the club’s delegate, who deals with the referee. That explains the boundary in [pool deck etiquette](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/pool-deck-etiquette).

---

### Share it with your swimmer

Use the deck to explain how each decision moves:

- **Under 12 (you're driving).** *“That arm means the starter is in charge now.”* It gives them one visible cue to follow.
- **12–15 (sharing the wheel).** *“Each official watches one area; the referee makes the race call.”* It separates the report from the decision.
- **16+ (they're driving).** *“If something looks wrong, take it through our delegado.”* It matches the formal route used at meets.

### Stay aligned with your coach

Your job is to note what you saw and stay away from the officials. The coach can point you to the club’s delegate: *“Who is our delegado à prova today, and should I pass this to them?”* The delegate handles meet matters with the *juiz-árbitro*.

### Keep exploring

- [Swim parent etiquette: pool deck rules](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/pool-deck-etiquette) — How to cheer while leaving technique, warm-up and results questions to the coach.
- [Swimming disqualification reasons: what DSQ means](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/when-they-get-disqualified) — Follow one missed rule from the official’s report to the referee’s decision.
- [First swim meet: what to expect before and between races](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/your-swimmers-first-meet) — What to pack for team warm-up, short races and long waits between events.
- [How to read swim meet results: times, splits, DSQ and EXH](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/reading-a-results-sheet) — Find official times, splits, DSQ, EXH, reaction figures and points.

## Related reading

- [Swim parent etiquette: pool deck rules](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/pool-deck-etiquette/)
- [Swimming disqualification reasons: what DSQ means](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/when-they-get-disqualified/)
- [First swim meet: what to expect before and between races](https://swimtrack.ai/blog/your-swimmers-first-meet/)

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