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Happy Swimmer
Lane Swimming
Leisure Pool
Diving
Fun in the Pool
Swimming
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The fastest sprinting stroke in swimming, the front crawl, was invented in Hawaii in 1893 and was introduced into the Olympics in 1912.
Breaststroke is a more complicated stroke than the crawl, requiring good synchronisation of arm and leg movements.
Backstroke was invented in the late 19th century as a backwards variant of the crawl style.
Butterfly, initially called the breast-butterfly, became a style of its own at the Olympic Games in Helsinki in 1952. The technique of the stroke looks unusual in that both arms are lifted forward and then pulled backwards to propel the swimmer through the water whilst the legs move together in a dolphin kick.
Men and women compete in either breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly or freestyle (usually crawl), or a combination of all 4 strokes (called a medley) to an arranged distance in a 25 metre or 50 metre pool - keeping in designated lanes. The race starts with the swimmers diving into the pool at an agreed gunshot or similar signal, and finishes with the swimmers touching the edge of the pool at the designated distance of the race.
Equipment
Apart from the necessary swimwear, availability of a suitable swimming pool is the only pre-requisite for recreational swimming. However, at a competitive level, additional personnel are required. These include a referee, starter and stroke judges to ensure legality of the swimming. Electronic touch pads are present at the end of each lane to precisely measure swimmers’ contact with the pool ends. A false start recall rope will also be present in competitions.
History
Competitive swimming and diving were practiced by the Greeks and Romans, and in Imperial Japan where the first races were recorded as early as 1603. The first organised swimming events took place in 1837 in London, where the Amateur Swimming Association was founded in 1869. Swimming, though only for men, was featured at the first modern Olympics in 1896, and has been included in the competitions ever since. It was only in 1924 that Olympic swimming started in pools: Previously competitions took place in the sea.
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