Competitive swimming includes pool and open water swimming. Pool swimming uses four strokes: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly. Open water swimming is usually a marathon style with a set distance. Swimmers may use any stroke, but it can be more dangerous due to natural water factors. Both types require years of training to excel.
There are two main types of competitive swimming. The more traditional swimming race is done in a pool, but there is also open water swimming. This may include swimming in the ocean or other open bodies of water, such as bays, rivers, or canals. The primary goal of competitive swimming is generally to swim a specified distance in the shortest amount of time, although some instances may have the goal of swimming the longest distance in a specified amount of time.
Competitive swimmers swimming in a pool use four different swimming strokes; freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly. This type of competitive swimming began in the 19th century and has been included in the Olympic Games since the first Olympic Games in 1896. Competitive swimmers generally train in a metric pool that is 25 meters (82 feet) or 50 meters long (164 ft), although some pools are 25 yards (22.9 m) or 50 yards (45.7 m) long. Most races consist of a swimming stroke, but other races are relays that include more than one stroke and sometimes require the use of all four strokes in one race.
The freestyle swimming stroke is one in which the swimmer alternates arms pulling through the water while alternating legs in a kicking motion. This is a fast stroke in which the swimmer will turn their head to the side to take a quick breath when necessary. The backstroke is similar, but the swimmer’s back is at the bottom of the pool. In both strokes, the swimmer’s hands reach in the direction in which he is swimming and pull the water toward his feet. Breathing is easier on the back because the swimmer’s face is out of the water.
The breaststroke can be slower. To perform the breaststroke, the swimmer faces forward and clasps their hands together, then pushes them forward, then out and back until they meet again, simultaneously kicking the legs out and back in unison, like a frog The head moves out of the water to allow the swimmer to breathe, and then lowers into the water with each stroke. The butterfly is characterized by a two-legged dolphin kick, and the swimmer faces forward, pushes the arms together above the water, then pulls them through the water up to the waist. The swimmer breathes as the arms come out of the water in this stroke, which is generally considered the most difficult.
Competitive swimming in the pool uses these four strokes. Runs are usually of a given metric length, such as 100 meters (328 ft) or 400 meters (1,312 ft), although runs in a pool measured in yards are also measured in yards. Swimmers usually start on a diving block or at the side of the pool, dive when the signal is given, and swim as fast as possible to get the best timing. This type of competitive swimming often requires years of training to succeed at a high level.
Competitive swimming can also be done in open water. Open water swimming is usually done in a marathon style. There is a set distance, like a swimming pool, but in open water it is usually measured in miles or kilometers. The goal of these competitive swimmers is to get to the destination as quickly as possible.
Sometimes in open water swimming, a specific stroke is required. In other events, there is no default stroke, so swimmers can use any of the four main strokes they like or even row when necessary. This type of competitive swimming can be more difficult and possibly more dangerous due to the uncontrolled factors of natural water, such as waves in the ocean and dangerous sea creatures such as rays and stinging jellyfish. It can also take years of training to excel in competitive open water swimming.
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