Competitive swimming
noun - Competitive swimming (or age group swimming) is a sport where pool and open water swimmers race to improve upon one's time or to beat the competitors in any given event. Competitive swimmers undergo various cycles of training in which the body is overloaded with work in the beginning and middle segments of the cycle, and then the workload is decreased in the final stage (the taper) as the swimmer approaches the competition. The taper is the final preparation period where the competitive swimmer reduces, or tapers, the workload in order to be able to perform at the optimal level.
Competitive swimming takes place for young children (age-group swimming), high school students, college students, masters athletes (or adult swimmers), and elite athletes at domestic and international competitions including the Summer Olympic Games.
At the Summer Olympic Games, male and female athletes compete in 16 of the recognized events each. Olympic events are held in a 50-meter pool, called a long course pool, and open bodies of water for the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim.
There are individual swimming events for the butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle, and individual medley and 4 types of relays that are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA).
Recognized Types of Competition
- Freestyle: 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 10 km (or other open water swims of lesser or greater distance)
- Backstroke: 50m, 100m, 200m
- Breaststroke: 50m, 100m, 200m
- Butterfly: 50m, 100m, 200m
- Individual medley: 100m (in 25m pools only), 200m, 400m
- Relays: 4×100m freestyle, 4×200m freestyle, 4×100m medley, 5 km 3-person team pursuit
Synonym
External links
- Joe Zemaitis Talks About Recovery From Extreme Sports On WOWSA Live
- Joe Zemaitis Talks Swimming Around The World On WOWSA Live - Part 1
- Alick Wickham, Surfer And Swimmer
- A Theory Why Breaststroke And Freestyle Were Developed
- In Pursuit Of Excellence In The Open Water
- Open Water Team Pursuit Rules
- Official OMEGA Timing Results for Today's 5K Team Pursuit
- Americans And Aussies Lead Team Pursuit At World Championships
- Will Pool To Follow Open Water? FINA's Mixed Gender Relays
- Triathlon And The Collegiate Experience
- In Pursuit Of Competition And Camaraderie
- Pick Winners, Get FINIS SwimSense
- Junior Open Water Swimmers Join The World Stage
- Open Water Swimming In Shanghai At The World Championships
- Team Pursuit At The 2013 FINA World Championships
- Sid Cassidy Is A Paragon Of Open Water Success
- Four's A Charm With Katrina Porter
- One Stroke, One Year At A Time
- What Is The Pitch For Swimming In America?
- Why Breaststroke And Freestyle Were Developed
- World Open Water Swimming Association
- Open Water Swimming
- A Theory Why Breaststroke And Freestyle Were Developed
- Swimming And Surfing In Pre-20th Century
- Alick Wickham, Surfer And Swimmer
