Who we are
The Fort Thomas Swim & Dive Team at the FTSC is a recreational team that is a member of the Northern Kentucky Swim League (NKSL). All club members ages 5 to 18 are eligible to participate. The fun of summer club swimming can lead to year-round involvement in the sport, but for most, it’s a positive, healthy way to spend your summer! The team will participate in 6 meets per year and a full league championship at the end of the season. Team members do not have to participate in meets but we highly recommend each swimmer gives it a try!
Our Program
Practices
- Practices begin on Monday, June 5th and run thru July.
- The team practices are held Monday- Thursday each week.
- Practice Times
Swimming:
11 and older: 8:00-9:15am
10 and under: 9:05-10:00am
Diving:
11 and older: 11:00-12:00pm
10 and under: 10:00-11:00am
Meets
- There are 6 regular season diving and swim meets with a championship meet (either All-Star or Champ Meet) at the end of the season. The meet schedules are posted on Team Unify.
- Diving Meets are held on Tuesday evenings at various NKSL clubs.
- Swim Meets are held on Thursday evenings at various NKSL clubs.
The Sharks pride themselves on team spirit, and this year there’s a theme for each meet.
Fees
Registration Fee: $30 per family plus $20 per child participating.
For example: $50 total for 1 child; $70 for 2 children; $90 for 3, etc.
Fees include payment of insurance required by the NKSL and a team T-shirt.
A child who is registered as a Junior Shark is included in the total computation of the number of swimmers and divers for that family.
Your registration fee goes towards the following:
- Coaches’ salaries, uniforms and meet equipment
- League fees and insurance
- A team t-shirt for every registered swimmer and diver
- Season banquet and awards
- All-Star Meet and Champ Meet fees
How to join
Fort Thomas Swim & Dive Team uses the Team Unify system for team communications, administration, information and registration. You may click on the START REGISTRATION button to register your swimmer(s) and/or diver(s) for the season. Registration Instructions answer most questions for this process.
Junior Sharks
Junior Sharks is a program that will be offered at FTSC for emerging swimmers that is linked to the Shark swim team. If your child loves the water and wants to join the swim team fun but cannot quite swim legal strokes or an entire lap, Junior Sharks is for you! A Junior Shark will practice three days a week for a half hour each time. During these practices, there will be coaches in the water to help with stroke instruction. The goal of Junior Sharks is to teach swimmers legal strokes and a love for swimming in hopes that they will be a future Shark swimmer!
The Junior Sharks is not a replacement for Swim Lessons but a bridge between swim lessons and swim team participation. Swimmers on the Junior Sharks will need to have the basic skills to swim freestyle and/or backstroke but do not need to be able to swim an entire lap of the pool at the beginning of the season. If you are not sure whether or not your child is ready for the swim team or pre-swim team, the coaches will be happy to evaluate their skills.
All of the spirit events for the Shark Swim Team are open to the Junior Sharks. The Junior Sharks can participate in meets if they are able to swim an entire lap with a legal stroke and the coaches feel they are ready for a meet. Meet participation is optional.
If at any time during the season, the coaches feel a Junior Shark is ready for the full practice, they can be moved up to the regular practice time (9:10-10:00 AM M-Th).
All Junior Sharks must be registered on the Swim and Dive team on the team website at www.ftsharks.com. If you are not sure whether or not your child is ready for the swim team or Junior Sharks team, the coaches will be happy to evaluate their skills. Adjustments will be made if your child needs to be moved to the Sharks team.
Junior Shark Swim Team Practices
Monday, Tuesday & Thursday
10:00-10:30 A.M.
Practice starts Monday, June 12th
2023 Team Calendar
Parent Resources
Team Records
Coaching Staff
Head Swim Coach
Kevin Kampschmidt
Kevin returns for his 6th season as our head coach. A native of the west side of Cincinnati, Kevin swam in college at the University of Cincinnati. After college he taught and coached swimming at La Salle High School for 13 years before moving to Fort Thomas in 2016. He is excited to be part of the Fort Thomas Swim Club Sharks again this summer.
Assistant Swim Coach
Savannah Brady
Savannah began swimming when she was 8 years old, and started swimming for the Fort Thomas Swim Club at age 10. She graduated from Highlands High School where she swam (since 6th grade) and ran cross country and track. Savannah attends Northern Kentucky University where she majors in Education and runs for the cross country and track teams. This will be her fifth year coaching. She’s excited to share her love of swimming with the kids and coach for the Sharks this summer!
Assistant Swim Coach
Will Griffith
Will swam 13 seasons for the Sharks and is going into his second year as a coach. He graduated from Highlands High School where he was a member of the cross country, swim and track teams. While on the swim team I was on relays that set multiple Highlands school records. Will attends Northern Kentucky University majoring in nursing while running on the NKU track and cross country teams. He is excited to help coach this year!
Assistant Swim Coach
Belle Bryant
Belle started swimming for the Sharks at 6, and will be competing in her 13th and final season this summer. She is a graduate of Highlands High School and was a member of the swim, golf, and track and field teams. Belle will be starting her first year at the University of Kentucky in the fall and will be majoring in Kinesiology. Belle is looking forward to her first year coaching the Sharks this summer!
Head Dive Coach
Kenna Abner
Kenna started diving at age 6 and has dove for the Fort Thomas Swim Club and the Highlands High School dive team. Kenna just completed her first year at the University of Kentucky and is studying Integrated strategical communications. This will be her first year coaching dive but has coached gymnastics for several years. Kenna is excited to work with children and make sure they have as much fun as she did when she dove for the Sharks!
Assistant Dive Coach
Isaac Bassett
Isaac returns as an assistant this season. He’s been diving for 10 years, 4 for the Sharks. He’s excited to be able to work with the divers, new and experienced. Isaac looks forward to teaching new dives and helping our divers become more experienced and confident with the sport.
The Fort Thomas Swim Club is a private swim club located in the heart of Fort Thomas, KY.
48 James Ave, Fort Thomas, KY 41075
(859) 441-1411