Swimming is without doubt one of the signature Olympic sports activities, and it comes with a protracted checklist of guidelines.
Between particular person occasions, relays and medleys, there are quite a lot of swimming races. Add in numerous swimming distances and strokes, and there's quite a bit to maintain up with within the pool.
Right here's every little thing you have to know in regards to the totally different strokes, guidelines, codecs and extra for swimming on the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Olympic swimming strokes
There are 4 strokes in Olympic swimming occasions: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly.
Whereas there are few restrictions in freestyle occasions, swimmers nonetheless use the entrance crawl, as it’s the quickest stroke. For the entrance crawl, swimmers use an alternating arm movement and a flutter kick.
Just like the entrance crawl, swimmers use an alternating arm movement and a flutter kick for the backstroke. Whereas swimmers have their chest going through the underside of the pool within the entrance crawl, the backstroke requires the swimmers to have their face and chest going through out of the water.
The chest is extra technical. Swimmers have to maneuver their arms in forward-out-back circles, maintain their elbows below the water and have a part of their head come out of the water with every stroke. I additionally must do a frog kick all through the race, aside from a dolphin kick that goes out and in of every flip.
The butterfly is probably the most bodily demanding swimming race. Swimmers swing their arms overhead whereas utilizing a dolphin kick, which requires each legs to maneuver collectively like a tail.
What number of Olympic swimming occasions are there?
There are 35 swimming medal occasions on the 2024 Paris Olympics: 17 males's, 17 girls's and one combined.
Nearly all of swimming occasions are particular person, however there are additionally three totally different relays within the Olympics. Distances fluctuate from 50 m (one lap) to 1500 m (30 laps).
Right here is the complete checklist of swimming occasions for the upcoming Video games:
- 50 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 100 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 200 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 400 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 800 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 1500 m freestyle (male/feminine)
- 100m backstroke (male/feminine)
- 200 m backstroke (male/feminine)
- 100m breaststroke (male/feminine)
- 200 m breaststroke (male/feminine)
- 100m butterfly (male/feminine)
- 200m butterfly (male/feminine)
- 200m particular person medley (males/girls)
- 400m particular person medley (males/girls)
- 4x100m freestyle relay (male/feminine)
- 4×200 m freestyle relay (male/feminine)
- 4×100 m medley (male/feminine/combined)
Olympic swimming occasion codecs
The swimming occasions are divided into rounds that construct as much as a remaining race of eight.
Particular person occasions at distances of 50m, 100m and 200m require not less than three rounds: preliminary heats, semi-finals and finals. Swimmers want a time within the high 16 in all preliminaries to earn a spot within the semifinals. The swimmers with the highest eight instances within the two semi-finals then advance to the ultimate.
Relays and particular person occasions of 400 m and over should not have semifinals. As a substitute, the swimmers with the highest eight instances within the preliminaries advance to the finals.
If two or extra swimmers are tied for the ultimate spot in a semifinal or remaining, they are going to compete in a “swim off,” an extra head-to-head race to find out who strikes on.
Olympic swimming begins
For the freestyle, breaststroke, butterfly and particular person medley occasions, swimmers start in a diving block. A starter then instructions “in your mark”, signaling the swimmers to bend right into a beginning place. As soon as all of the swimmers are nonetheless, a starter will activate an digital tone, at which level the swimmers will dive into the pool. A swimmer's head should break the floor within the first 15 meters.
For the backstroke and medley relays, swimmers begin within the water going through the pool wall. They put each arms on the bar hooked up to the diving block and put their toes on a backstroke body under the floor. The swimmers then bounce again to begin the race after the electrical tone goes off.
Are there false begins in swimming?
There are not any false begins in swimming occasions. Swimmers who dive into the pool earlier than the digital tone goes off are mechanically disqualified. If disqualification is asserted after the beginning sign sounds, the race continues and the swimmer is disqualified after the race is over.
Swimming laps
Swimmers are required to the touch the wall when turning.
In freestyle and backstroke, swimmers can bounce into the wall and push off with their toes. In butterfly and breaststroke, swimmers should contact the wall with each arms earlier than turning.
As the beginning, the swimmers have to interrupt the floor 15 meters from the wall after making a flip.
Swimming relay guidelines
Swimming relays on the Olympics contain 4 swimmers from the identical nation every finishing one leg of the race. The second, third and fourth swimmers are solely capable of begin their legs as soon as the swimmer in entrance of them hits the wall. The fourth leg swimmer to the touch the wall first wins the race for his staff.
The 4 swimmers who compete in a relay prelim will not be essentially the 4 swimmers within the remaining, and plenty of international locations use different swimmers for the prelim to maintain their finest swimmers rested for the ultimate. Swimmers who compete within the prelims however not the finals are nonetheless eligible for medals.
Medley swimming guidelines
Medleys incorporate all 4 swimming strokes in the identical race.
For a person medley, a swimmer should do every of the strokes for 1 / 4 of the race within the following order: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle.
A medley relay entails 4 swimmers with every swimmer utilizing a special stroke for 100m. The medley relay order goes backstroke, arms, butterfly after which freestyle.
For a combined medley relay, every staff of 4 swimmers should have two males and two girls. Groups can resolve which swimmers take every stroke.
Kate Douglass is a world champion swimmer who’s making an attempt to translate this success to the Summer season Olympic Video games. It received't be straightforward, however she is aware of who she desires to occasion with in Paris if it occurs.
Task of Olympic swimming programs
Swimmers and relay groups obtain their lane assignments based mostly on their instances from earlier rounds. Sooner swimmers are positioned within the center lanes, whereas slower swimmers in a warmth are positioned on the edges of the pool.
Bathers within the outer lanes are at an obstacle as a result of they are often slowed down by the waves created by the water bouncing off the partitions. The center programs maintain the sooner swimmers additional away from the partitions and in addition give them a greater view of their fellow opponents on each side.
Under is an instance of how lane assignments work for an Olympic semifinal or remaining:
- Race 1: Seventh quickest
- Lane 2: Fifth quickest
- Race 3: The third quickest
- Lane 4: The quickest
- Lane 5: The second quickest
- Lane 6: The fourth quickest
- Lane 7: Sixth quickest
- Lane 8: The eighth quickest
How massive is an Olympic swimming pool?
An Olympic swimming pool is 50 meters lengthy, 25 meters broad and divided into eight lanes.
2024 Olympics swimming program
All swimming occasions for the Paris 2024 Olympics shall be held on the Paris La Défense Enviornment in Nanterre from July 27 to August 4.
Swimming marathon on the 2024 Olympics
Marathon swimming is its personal Olympic sport and comes with a number of totally different guidelines.
The 10km race takes place in open water and shall be held on the Seine for the Paris Olympics. Swimmers are allowed to make incidental contact with one another and there’s a mass begin for all 22 opponents.
