Swimming is one of the biggest sports at the Olympics, with dozens of medal events. All of them are built on four strokes. The sport is governed worldwide by World Aquatics, which was called FINA until 2022. Here is a guide to the main rules.
The pool
- An Olympic size pool is 50 metres long.
- Short course events are swum in 25 metre pools.
- Lanes are separated by lane ropes, and swimmers must stay in their lane.
The four strokes
Freestyle
Swimmers can use any stroke, but almost all use the front crawl because it is the fastest. Some part of the body must break the surface during the race, except for up to 15 metres after the start and each turn.
Backstroke
Swimmers stay on their back and start in the water, holding the starting grip. The 15 metre underwater limit also applies.
Breaststroke
Arm and leg movements must be at the same time and in the same horizontal plane. A dolphin kick is allowed only once, during the pull out after the start and each turn. Both hands must touch the wall together at turns and the finish.
Butterfly
Both arms move together over the water, with a dolphin kick. Both hands must touch the wall at the same time at turns and the finish. Swimmers can stay underwater for up to 15 metres after the start and turns.
Medley order
- Individual medley (IM): butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle.
- Medley relay: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle. Backstroke goes first because it starts in the water.
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Starts and false starts
Swimmers start from blocks, except in backstroke. A swimmer who starts before the signal is disqualified.
Turns
Swimmers must touch the wall at every turn. In freestyle and backstroke, they usually do a tumble turn and touch with their feet.
Olympic events
Events range from the 50m freestyle sprint to the 1500m freestyle, along with relays and the 10 km open water marathon swim.
India in swimming
In 2021, Sajan Prakash and Srihari Nataraj became the first Indian swimmers to achieve the Olympic A qualifying time, earning direct entries to the Tokyo Games. The Swimming Federation of India runs national competitions.
Bottom line
Every swimming race follows clear stroke rules on arm action, kicks, turns and finishes. Knowing them makes the sport far more enjoyable to watch.
Source / स्रोत: World Aquatics, Swimming Federation of India, Sports Authority of India
