Typing eight names, eight teams and eight seed times for every heat of a meet is slow, and it's where typos come from. If the meet runs on meet software, you can load its export file instead. Then you pick an event and a heat on the Scoring tab and the lanes, swimmers, teams and seed times fill in.
What you need
- A swim meet with its teams. See Create a swim meet.
- The Starter plan. Meet Program is in the Customization sub-tab.
- An export file made after heats are seeded. A file exported before seeding has entries but no heats.
Export the file
The Works with table on the panel lists what to export from each program:
| Meet software | Files | How to export |
|---|---|---|
| Hy-Tek Meet Manager | .hy3, .cl2, .zip | After seeding: File, then Export, then Results for Meet Manager, with seeded rounds included |
| SwimTopia Meet Maestro | .hy3, .sd3, .zip | Finish & Export, then Downloads |
| Swimmingly, TeamUnify | .sd3 | Export the meet as SDIF (.sd3) |
| Splash, Swimify | .lxf, .lef | Export the meet as Lenex |
| Anything else | .csv | Fill in the ScoreCastr spreadsheet template |
ScoreCastr works out which format a file is from what's inside it, not from its name. A zip is opened and the meet file inside it is read.
A heat sheet PDF can't be read. Use the export file.
Use the spreadsheet template
For other software or a hand-built start list, click Download the spreadsheet template on the panel. You get scorecastr-meet-template.csv, with one row per swimmer or relay and these columns:
event_number, event_name, gender, distance, stroke, relay, heat, lane, swimmer, team_code, team_name, seed_time, status, leg_1 to leg_4, round
- event_number, heat, lane and swimmer are required. Rows without an event number or swimmer are skipped.
- relay: yes for a relay, with the swimmers in leg_1 to leg_4.
- status: SCR for a scratch.
- round: prelims or finals, if the event has both.
Save it as CSV. Excel files (.xlsx) aren't read.
Upload and check
- Open Overlays, then Customization, then Meet Program.
- Drop the file on the panel, or click Choose file.
- Check what was found:
- the format and the software that made it
- Events, Heats seeded, Swimmers and Teams in the file
- checks for the course, the number of lanes and the meet name
- Under Match the teams, pick a meet team for each team in the file. ScoreCastr guesses by name and code. You can also choose Add as a new team (added to the meet without a logo) or No team.
- Read the Heads up notes, for example events with no heats yet, relays with no swimmers listed, or diving events (skipped: diving isn't part of a swimming meet in ScoreCastr).
- Click Load Program. Nothing goes on air.
The file is read in your browser. Only the program (events, heats, lanes, swimmers, teams and seed times) is saved with the meet.
If the file numbers lanes from 0 and your meet doesn't (or the other way round), the check offers a button to change the meet's lane numbers to match.
Load heats on the Scoring tab
With a program loaded, a Meet Program card sits above the lane table on Scoring.
- Pick an event from the Events list. Events show their heat count, "done ✓" once you've moved past them, or "not seeded" or "diving, skipped". A meet with sessions gets a Session picker.
- Pick a heat. The preview shows each lane's swimmer, team and seed.
- Click Load Event 7 · Heat 2 (the label names your heat). The event and lanes fill in below. Nothing is on air yet.
- Check the lanes and click Update Start List.
After the race, enter the results as usual (see Run a swim meet from the Scoring tab). Then Next Heat → Event 7 · Heat 3 loads the next heat the same way. It skips diving and unseeded events, stays in the session, and reads End of session at the end.
When you leave a heat, the times and places you entered are saved with it. Loading that heat again brings them back. If you load a heat over changes you haven't sent, ScoreCastr asks first.
Re-import after scratches or re-seeding
- Export the meet again from your meet software.
- On the Meet Program panel, click Re-import updated file.
- Check the file. Your team matches from last time are remembered.
- Click Replace Program.
Results you've already entered are kept, and the heat on air stays on air.
Remove program goes back to typing lanes by hand. Nothing on air changes, and you can import the file again.
Fix common problems
"This is a PDF heat sheet." Export the meet from the meet software instead.
"We couldn't tell which program made this file." Use one of the exports in the table, or the spreadsheet template saved as CSV.
"The spreadsheet is missing the column..." Start from the downloaded template and keep its header row.
Some events say "not seeded". They had no heats when you exported. Re-import after seeding.
The course or lane check is amber. The file's course or lane count doesn't match the meet. Seed times show as the file has them, and lanes above the meet's lane count won't show.
"Not loaded" with a 413 error. The program is too big to save. That only happens with a very large meet: try a file with fewer events, such as one session.
Checklist
- File exported after heats were seeded
- Counts and checks look right
- Every team in the file matched to a meet team
- Load Program clicked
- First heat loaded and sent with Update Start List
- Re-imported after scratches