Q&A on USA Swimming Power Points and Time Standards

[adam]

Q: Why does a swimmer with a time close to a AAA cut only have a power point score of 562?

A: AAA cuts are based on percentiles, typically representing the top ~6-7% of swimmers in an age group. Power points, however, are calculated differently:

• Power points compare times to the fastest historical performances ever recorded, not just recent years.
• They don’t reset every four years like AAA times, so older, exceptionally fast swims continue to impact the benchmarks.
• Different events have different scoring scales—longer races often require larger time drops to significantly increase power points.

For example, in a distance event like the 500 Free, small time drops may not lead to major power point increases because the top historical times are extremely fast. That’s why a AAA time doesn’t always translate to a high power point score.

Q: How often does USA Swimming update power points?

A: USA Swimming doesn’t officially disclose how frequently they update power points, but they are based on historical all-time data, rather than just the past four years like AAA, AA, and other time standards.