Lead relay split as a qualifying time

Yes.

No. If the relay is DQed it does not count.

JHU is correct, a DQ nullifies the lead-off split

Is DIII different than DI in this respect? In DI you can still use the first leg if a later leg DQ’s, I’m I am pretty positive it used to be this way in DIII.

I wasn’t able to find the 2007 DIII handbook, but if you look at page 16 of the 2007 DI handbook:
http://www.ncaa.org/library/handbooks/swimming/2007/2007_d1_m_w_swim_handbook.pdf

you’ll find this under note 2:

“A time that has been achieved by a competitor over an initial distance within a regularly scheduled and scored race shall be nullified if that competitor subsequently is disqualified in that race; however, a time achieved by a competitor during the first leg of a relay race shall not be nullified by the subsequent disqualification of a different member of the same relay team.”

A DQ doesn’t indicate how you DQ’d – even if it was the 3rd exchange it could have been passing the 15 meter mark on the start. It could be the backstroker pushing off the wall on their front. Unfortunately, it could be someone jumping into the water before all of the teams have finished (Olaf/GAC women’s dual anyone?) When you DQ it’s as if no part of the race ever happened.

@N Dynamite wrote:

A DQ doesn’t indicate how you DQ’d – even if it was the 3rd exchange it could have been passing the 15 meter mark on the start. It could be the backstroker pushing off the wall on their front. Unfortunately, it could be someone jumping into the water before all of the teams have finished (Olaf/GAC women’s dual anyone?) When you DQ it’s as if no part of the race ever happened.

Not true. See above.

I can’t imagine that they would DQ a lead-off leg of a relay if the last guy jumps. In a 200 FR for example, once the lead-off swimmer is done, the subsequent relay starts and swims have no impact on his time or performance. It would be ridiculous to discount a lead-off leg swim just because his teammate left the blocks .02 seconds early a minute after he was done swimming.

I’m not saying that JHU is wrong, but I would think that the NCAA would follow my same logic and not discount the split.

In USA/international swimming rules, which are similar to college swimming rules, any time or record (world, team, American, national) still counts for lead off legs if the lead off person was not the reason for the DQ! From what I understand all DQ have to be listed with a reason, College or USA/international. Just because the relay was DQ’d does not mean the lead off time is not counted. We had a similar situation with a kid getting a qualifying time on the lead off of a relay this summer that was DQ’ed.

Since many of the rules are universal across all types of swimming competition I would assume it is the same here.

swimmers have entered DIII NCAAs with a lead-off splits of DQd relays in the past