PROVO -- Cougar swimmers, old and new, gathered together again to kick off the preseason with the annual Alumni Swim Meet Friday at the Richards Building Pool.

“It was a fun time to get together and see old friends,” said BYU head swim coach, Tim Powers. “It was a great chance for people to show they can still swim.”

The swimmers did a full workout before the meet and then competed in many short events and relays. All-American Brett Allen wasn’t too far off his BYU record in the 50 free.

Kurt Dickson, BYU alumnus swimmer and father of freshman Kelsey Dickson, swam the 500 freestyle, surprising all with how fast he could go.

“He [Dickson] swam as fast as the guys that graduated last year,” said Powers.

Coach Powers was also impressed with John Parise, a standout swimmer from the 1990s who swam as fast as he did when he was at BYU.

The BYU swim team will be back at the Richards Building pool for the annual Blue and White Meet Friday Oct. 24.

PROVO -- Cougar swimmers will kick off the preseason with the annual Alumni Swim Meet this Friday at 6 p.m. in the Richards Building Pool in conjunction with Homecoming week.

“It’s fun that we get to see people we haven’t seen for a while,” said head swim coach Tim Powers. “From swimmers who have recently graduated to those who haven’t been in a swim suit in a long time--it’s always great to see old friends.”

Many BYU alumnus swimmers will return to the pool including 1985-89 swimmer Kurt Dickson, the father of freshman recruit, Kelsey Dickson. Kurt won the swim around Alcatraz last year in San Francisco, Calif. and hopes to challenge his daughter in the 500 free.

Richard Barnes, who swam the English Channel, and All-Americans Brett Allen and Jorge Azevedo will all return for the Alumni Meet.

Coach Powers will split up the current team and alumni that come to swim into two teams and let the squads compete. They will compete in 50s of each stroke and the 100 IM, as well as relays and the 500 free.

“We make the events alumni-friendly because we realize they have jobs and they’re not training all the time,” Powers said. “We are going to do short events to make sure they are willing to participate.”

Alumni are encouraged to bring their spouses and children along to join in the festivities of the evening.

The event is free and open to the public.