Approximately 1,200 competitors from 16 YMCA teams will dive into this weekend’s 53rd annual Maine YMCA State Swimming Championships at Wallace Pool on the University of Maine campus in Orono.

Local YMCA teams include the Barracudas of the Bangor Y, the Canoe City Swim Club of the Old Town-Orono YMCA, the MDI YMCA Sharks, the Dolphins of the Downeast Family YMCA in Ellsworth, the Piscataquis Region YMCA in Dover-Foxcroft, the Waldo County YMCA in Belfast, the Penobscot Bay YMCA in Rockport.

The Bath Area Family YMCA’s Long Reach Swim Club boys and girls teams are the defending state champions. Long Reach easily outdistanced the Barracudas last year, with the Sharks finishing third.

There will be 88 events for ten age groups in six sessions starting with the ages 8-and-under boys and girls Saturday morning. Events begin both Saturday and Sunday at 8:30 a.m.

The 10-and-under girls and boys and 12-and-under boys will swim in the Saturday afternoon session. The 12-and-under girls swim Saturday night.

The 14-and-under and senior girls will open up Sunday morning, followed by the 14-and-under and senior boys Sunday afternoon.

Trophies will be presented to the top eight finishers in each event and finishers 9-16 will receive ribbons. There will also be awards for the top teams in each age group and for Outstanding Girl and Boy Swimmer and Coach of the Year.

The team with highest combined boys and girls point total will receive the John W. Coombs Award, which is named in honor of a former director of the Bangor YMCA.

The Maine Swimming Inc. Winter Combined Championships will be held March 6-9 also at UMaine’s Wallace Pool. The meet will include YMCA and U.S. Swimming teams.

jbloch@bangordailynews.net

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