Jackson Picard Invited to USA Swimming National Diversity Select Camp
Three-day camp at Olympic Training Center features elite swimmers from multicultural populations
MENLO PARK, CA [May 2019] – Local Alto Swim Club athlete, Jackson Picard was selected to USA Swimming’s 13th Annual National Diversity Select Camp, to be held May 2 - 5 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
“Our team is thrilled to have one of our own Alto Swim Club athletes participating in the National Diversity Select Camp,” Alto Swim Club Head Coach Laura Mitchell said. “This is truly an honor for our team and for Jackson, he has worked very hard to earn this opportunity and everyone at Alto is excited for him.”
Picard will be one of 48 swimmers from around the country selected to participate and will be attending the camp with his coach, Laura Mitchell. The purpose of the camp is to instill a vision of success and inspire athletes from ethnically underrepresented populations to become leaders in the sport of swimming. The National Diversity Select Camp brings together some of USA Swimming’s most diverse talent for an extended weekend of pool training, leadership development, team-building activities and learning.
“It is powerful for these athletes to connect with other swimmers that are navigating our sport in a way that they can relate to,” USA Swimming Senior Director of Education, Programs & Services Mariejo Truex said. “This camp helps drive performance knowing that these athletes aren’t the only ones and knowing that they have the necessary support from not only other athletes, but from coaches, officials, parents, volunteers, and USA Swimming staff.”
A total of 36 clubs from 21 states will be represented at the prestigious camp. Alumni of the program include Isabel Gormley, Daniel Roy, Jack LeVant and Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel.
Jackson Picard trains in the Senior 1 Group at Alto Swim Club and has posted impressive results at recent local meets. At the Pacific Swimming Spring Junior Olympics (March 15 – 17), Jackson won five individual events and swam on three winning ALTO relays. He is a student at Hillview Middle School in Menlo Park, California and has been a member of Alto Swim Club since age 10, moving through the club’s competitive track that focuses on performance across all events and holistic development in and out of the pool.
The Alto Swim Club 18 and under swim program is Head Coached by Laura Mitchell and Joey Sementelli. Alto Swim Club’s professional group includes Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel and is coached by Stanford’s Women’s team head coach Greg Meehan, Stanford men’s team head coach Ted Knapp, women’s associate head coach Tracy Slusser, and assistant men’s coach Jeff Kostoff. Alto Swim Club trains at the Avery Aquatic Center at Stanford University, as well as at multiple other facilities in the Palo Alto area.
The goal of USA Swimming’s National Diversity Select Camp is to:
Demonstrate the viability of multicultural success in swimming.
Achieve performance excellence at every level of the sport.
Expound the benefits and value of participating in the sport of swimming.
Assist in recruiting more swimmers and coaches from diverse ethnicities to the sport of swimming.
Be positive leaders and role models that others from multicultural backgrounds can emulate.
The camp hosts swimmers between the ages 14 and 16 and selection is based on times swum at USA Swimming sanctioned events. Each athlete selected for the camp will be provided complimentary room and board at the Olympic Training Center, ground transportation and full airfare to Colorado Springs.
For more information on National Diversity Select Camp please visit usaswimming.org.
About USA Swimming
As the National Governing Body for the sport of swimming in the United States, USA Swimming is a 400,000-member service organization that promotes the culture of swimming by creating opportunities for swimmers and coaches of all backgrounds to participate and advance in the sport through clubs, events and education. Our membership is comprised of swimmers from the age group level to the Olympic Team, as well as coaches and volunteers. USA Swimming is responsible for selecting and training teams for international competition including the Olympic Games, and strives to serve the sport through its core objectives: Build the base, Promote the sport, Achieve competitive success. For more information, visit www.usaswimming.org.