This weekend, hotels and restaurants in Waynesboro are full of young swimmers and the family members who cheer them on.
The event is the Subway Commonwealth Games, which makes a big splash for Waynesboro each year. Just a few years ago the Commonwealth Games were one of only three major swim meets in Virginia during the month of June.
Now it's one of a dozen and the recession has limited travel for many families, but the games are still one of the region's biggest sporting events.
The Commonwealth Games take place at the War Memorial Pool in Ridgeview Park. The three-day event draws 450 young swimmers from as far was Williamsburg, southwest Virginia, and even Maryland.
They combine with coaches and family members to bring Waynesboro a crowd of perhaps 1,500 people.
Swim meet co-director David Bihl said, "It's always hard to know those numbers. One of the things that's happened in Waynesboro is, where we used to be very tight for lodging, there's a lot more overnight rooms in Waynesboro. We're still hearing from the properties that they all fill up."
Competitors range from 9-year-olds in their first big meet to some of the fastest high school swimmers in Virginia. The Commonwealth Games run through Sunday.
Over these three days, those swimmers will race in 3,300 individual events. Organizers say one of the big draws of this meet each year is a rare chance to compete in an outdoor pool.
