{"id":221233,"date":"2016-09-15T13:22:45","date_gmt":"2016-09-15T20:22:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=221233"},"modified":"2016-09-15T13:22:45","modified_gmt":"2016-09-15T20:22:45","slug":"santa-clara-crowned-top-swim-city-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/santa-clara-crowned-top-swim-city-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"Santa Clara Crowned Top Swim City In America"},"content":{"rendered":"

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (September 15, 2016<\/span>) \u2013 <\/strong>The San Jose-Santa Clara, Calif., area earned the No. 1 position as America\u2019s Top Swim City for the first time ever, according to a third-annual study commissioned by USA Swimming<\/a> and leading swimwear company Speedo USA<\/a>. Two-time Top Swim City Ann Arbor, Mich., placed second, with the Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn., area climbing seven spots from 2015 to claim the third position.<\/p>\n

Rounding out the top 10 of the 50 Top Swim Cities<\/a>, Presented by Speedo USA, were Austin, Texas; Madison, Wisc.; Washington, D.C.; Raleigh-Cary, N.C; Fort Collins-Loveland, Colo.; Indianapolis-Carmel, Ind.; and the San Francisco-Oakland, Calif., Bay Area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe swimming community is unlike any other, and I know that the support of my teammates and coaches, and the close bonds we developed during training, have inspired me to achieve at our sport\u2019s highest level,\u201d said four-time Olympic medalist and Team Speedo USA athlete Maya DiRado<\/strong>. \u201cI understand firsthand the impact these swim cities have on individual swimmers \u2013 from elite athletes to those just beginning their competitive careers \u2013 and hope this survey and my USA teammates\u2019 performances in Rio inspire more people to get in the water.\u201d<\/p>\n

San Jose-Santa Clara\u2019s jump can be attributed in part to its large growth in new USA Swimming members in 2016. Long known as a swimming hotbed, the area saw 36 percent of its USA Swimming membership join for the first time this year. In addition, the area also holds the top spot for most USA Swimming members per 1,000 people, and the 64 pools in the San Jose-Santa Clara area make swimming more accessible for people to join a team.<\/p>\n

Santa Clara Swim Club is one of the most successful swim teams nationwide, with its swimmers winning 80 Olympic medals, including 51 gold, 17 silver and 12 bronze, during its proud history. Swimming legends Mark Spitz and Donna de Varona also grew up in the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a great honor for San Jose-Santa Clara to earn recognition as America\u2019s Top Swim City. Aquatics has a deep history here, and the passion and commitment for aquatic sports is really a fabric of our community,\u201d Santa Clara Swim Club Head Coach John Bitter<\/strong> said. \u201cOur future is incredibly bright, including the new Haines International Swim Center, and our outstanding partnership with the city of Santa Clara will lead to more successes for America\u2019s Top Swim City in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

California (eight cities in the top 50 spots) and Colorado (four in the top 33) were the highest-ranking states.<\/p>\n

Indianapolis moved up 10 places from 2015 to take the No. 9 spot this year and numerous other cities made their debut into the top 50. Roanoke, Va., had the biggest jump, moving up 49 spots to No. 45 on the list. Louisville, Ky., gained 42 spots to crack the top 50 at No. 48 for 2016, and Atlantic City, N.J., jumped 41 spots from 88 to 47.\u00a0 Omaha, Neb., host city of the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials \u2013 Swimming, also had a notable jump within the top 50, advancing 33 spots from 50 in 2015 to 17 this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe top swim cities exemplifies all the qualities that make the sport of swimming great, with strong community involvement, ease of access and ability to grow the sport,\u201d said Matt Farrell<\/strong>, Chief Marketing Officer for USA Swimming. \u201cWe want to invite people of all ages across the country to join the sport of swimming, and we hope this list inspires more kids and families to get involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each city\u2019s ranking is based on an aggregate score in categories including percentage of active swimmers and swim clubs, swim team growth, number of accessible pools and volume of top-level swimmers from the area. Cities in the top 50 had an MSA population of 250,000 or higher.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpeedo USA is committed to creating products that help all athletes achieve their goals in the water, and we are thrilled to see the impact these communities have in supporting that same mission,\u201d said John Graham<\/strong>, Senior Vice President of Sales of Speedo USA. \u201cFrom swimming competitively or for fitness, or taking vertical workouts to the pool, the results of this survey show that more people and cities are embracing the power of water.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other notable facts about the cities ranked 2-10 include:<\/p>\n