Campaign promotes the benefits of joining a swim team

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo./PRNewswire via COMTEX -- USA Swimming, the national governing body for the sport of competitive swimming, today announced the launch of its first annual We Want You on Our Team campaign from the Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool competition in Irvine, California.

The educational initiative, which runs throughout August and September, is a multi-faceted promotion to encourage youth participation on swim teams and raise awareness of the social and health benefits of swim team membership.

By partnering with Olympic swimmers Michael Phelps, Ian Crocker, Brendan Hansen, Amanda Beard, Aaron Peirsol and Lenny Krayzelburg, the campaign will use in-school promotions, Public Service Announcements (PSAs), a unique Web site (http://www.usaswimming.org/ontheteam), a Teen Choice Awards contest, and club events nationwide to bolster swim team membership among youths ages six to 16.

"Swimming is a fun team sport and a great way for kids and teens to stay healthy while making lifelong friends," commented Rod Davis, chief marketing officer for USA Swimming. "USA Swimming's We Want You on Our Team campaign will educate and motivate youths to become active and join a swim team, ultimately helping grow the sport of swimming at a grassroots level."

USA Swimming will launch a series of PSAs during the August 6th Mutual of Omaha "Duel in the Pool" Broadcast on NBC. The Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool is an annual competition between the United States and Australian national teams. The PSAs will continue airing throughout the fall during The Menu on FOX and will activate youths and teens to join a swim team.

Additionally, in an effort to further boost swim team membership, USA Swimming will host a variety of events and promotions throughout August and September as part of the We Want You on Our Team campaign:

Kids and teens who join a USA Swimming team and register online at http://www.usaswimming.org/ontheteam can win a variety of fun prizes each week. USA Swimming will be giving away three prize packs per week to kids and teens that enter for a chance to win the ultimate grand prize -- a trip for four to the 2006 Teen Choice Awards. Every day a kid or teen logs onto the site, they will receive another entry into the sweepstakes.

The contest Web site: http://www.usaswimming.org/ontheteam, designed by ePrize, will also host online chats with Olympic swimmers and feature a variety of health and fitness tips. Additionally, the name of every prizewinner will be posted on the site each week.

More than 2,800 USA Swimming clubs have been invited to host "Friends and Family Swim Days" in communities across the country. Family relays, stroke and turn demonstrations, and diving clinics will demonstrate the social and health benefits of being on a swim team. Club members can invite friends and family to spend time at their pool and experience life on a swim team first-hand.

USA Swimming will promote the We Want You on Our Team campaign in more than 2,000 elementary schools across the country. Schools will receive campaign-branded book covers featuring the faces of Olympic swimmers, driving kids to http://www.usaswimming.org/ontheteam and encouraging them to join a swim team.

In addition to USA Swimming's We Want You on Our Team campaign, Toyota -- a USA Swimming sponsor -- will be hosting swim clinics featuring Olympians Dara Torres and Rowdy Gaines. Held at select USA Swimming clubs nationwide, the Summer Splash Clinics are open to the public and feature a variety of fun educational events.

About USA Swimming
USA Swimming (http://www.usaswimming.org) is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. USA Swimming formulates the rules, implements policies and procedures, conducts national championships, disseminates safety and sports medicine information, and selects athletes to represent the United States in international competition. USA Swimming has more than 300,000 members nationwide and sanctions more than 7,000 events each year.