Our 9yo can be doing anything from 1x45min session a week to 6/7 1.5-2hr sessions. It really depends on their current level which often is driven by what age they learned to swim and age they develop their co ordination and spatial awareness.
For example we have 1 or 2 9/10yo who are in regional stream already but learned to swim at 3/4yo and then there are 9 yo who didn't manage to get into LTS until 6/7yo because of covid being the age they'd have started and then the backlog after.
But there is no way of knowing - based on current national/ regional squads where any of those 9yo will end up.
There are plenty of swimmers like ds in his clubs national squad who didn't join a club until 12yo and so were still swimming 2-3 sessions (5-6hrs) a week at 12/13yo. He didn't join his current club (city club with loads of hours and facilities) until he was 16yo.
I wish it was made clear it's not a linear journey for parents of younger swimmers. And also people realised that of those who do get into national/british/ European juniors - how few of those then go on to worlds/olympics. I feel for parents of 8/9/10yo swimmers who feel pressurised (whether that's by a club or just personally) to be swimming loads of hours at that age to be successful and sometimes made to feel it's the only way to be successful.
The GB team hasn't changed much in the last 2 cycles and maybe even past decade. The reason we know the swimmers names is because they are around at the top for a long time.
Of around 6000 AB swimmers in an age group with 100m times per year the top 40/50 make British and nationals. It's a really small number. It's statistically much more likely you won't! It's no poor reflection on you, your coach or the club if you don't.
I know our situation is different because ds is a a para swimmer so it's a smaller pool (no pun intended 🫣😂) of swimmers, they race open age group rather than age and often race multi classification by points rather than by classification. But I think the theory I have still stands! You don't need to be training in a squad for 6 sessions a week a 9yo to make it to the top. I don't think my ds is an anomaly either in this. Not that he's at the top either 😂
Swimming, especially club swimming, is so beneficial in so many ways that go beyond what level you swim at. And enjoyment should always be at the heart of it - there is really no point getting up at 4/5am to swim unless you love it whatever level you are at imo. And I think those who do it with one goal in mind are the ones who burn out and drop out at 14/15/16yo.
Maybe the message from the top needs to be clearer?
So I would take the swim sessions that work for you. Focus on enjoyment. Always enjoy it - and most importantly enjoy whatever journey swimming becomes for you.
The reason my ds still swims and trains ridiculously at 20yo is because he genuinely loves it. Getting up at 4am everyday for me however ...... 🧐 but I do it because I love the enjoyment he gets from it.
I hope that this doesn't come across as a rant (it's not but I'm tired because I'm suffering cluster headaches to barely getting any sleep some nights so I'm aware my delivery right now may come across as too direct as sleep deprivation is definitely a form of torture 😂). It's just passion. Passion that every child should enjoy sport for the benefits it brings now rather than for benefits it may bring in 10-15 years time.