This could very well be true in other countries too but one thing that I constantly observe during these swim meets is the amount of cheers and claps the slowest swimmer gets. It’s often very clear a swimmer is going to take long time to finish the long course (anything 200M and above) and many times you see this one struggling swimmer trying to get to finish line - and when they do, the whole crowd erupts with cheers and claps. It’s such a morale booster for these kids, must feel like such a relief that their race counted. I guess everyone loves underdogs.