IMSHOF does not ratify or accredit swims. IMSHOF does however make a judgement to “accept” (or not) to include information on ballots and, if successful, on official biographies. In the nomination process – this is called verification. IMSHOF will not include contested swims.

IMSHOF looks for several different types of verification and notes:
L = longswims.com
O1, O2, etc – organizational website (each one listed) – examples: Australian Marathon Swimming Australia, BLDSA, ILDSA, Capri-Naples, and winners by years – Sabac Swim Marathon, etc.. Longswims.com will not include information about races where the full swimmers list is not included.
D – documentation – example a swim log and signed witness statement or a set of races results retained by the swimmer
W – witness. IMSHOF may take the word of a trusted witness (usually an IMSHOF Honoree) in the boat.
M – media – example races results published the next day in a local newspaper
NR – no verification required as this is a small part of their overall career