Swimming E-Book

Alan Lynn

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 212

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Beschreibung

Crowood Sports Guides provide sound, practical advice that will help make you a better sportsperson whether you are learning the basic skills, discovering more advanced techniques or reviewing the fundamentals of your sport. Featured in Swimming - Crowood Sports Guides are information boxes containing 'Key Points' and 'Top Tips'; sequence photographs and detailed diagrams in colour. There is a thorough analysis of the four strokes (Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle), starts and turns, including the individual Medley, and valuable advice on techniques, coaching, drills, training, tapering, nutrition and competition psychology. There is also an introduction to rules and equipment. Aimed at swimmers of all levels of ability, young or old, novice or expert and coaches and trainers. Superbly illustrated with underwater and above-water colour photographs.

Leseprobe

CROWOOD SPORTS GUIDES

SWIMMING

TECHNIQUE • TRAINING • COMPETITION STRATEGY

Alan Lynn

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2006 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2014

© The Crowood Press Ltd 2006

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 861 5

Dedication

To my wife Jacqueline and son Cameron, with thanks for their patience and understanding in ‘the long absences upstairs’ during the writing of this book.

Acknowledgements

The author and publishers would like to thank the following for their help in the production of this book: Brian Pitkin (for the photographs, except where credited otherwise, and except for the part-openers, which are © Steve Lindridge iDEAL iMAGES (Scotland)); The University of Stirling (for the use of the National Swimming Academy pool); and Stirling ASC (the swimmers).

CONTENTS

Preface

Part 1: Introduction to Swimming

1

The Sport – History, Strokes and Rules

2

Getting Started – Facilities and Equipment

3

The Aquatics Family

4

Effective Teaching and Coaching

5

Swimming for Health

Part 2: Developing Your Technique

6

Fundamentals

7

The Building Blocks

8

Butterfly

9

Backstroke

10

Breaststroke

11

Freestyle

12

Individual Medley

Part 3:Training

13

Methods and Principles of Training

14

The Session

15

The Season

16

Nutrition

Part 4: Competition

17

Competition Psychology

18

Competition Analysis

19

Tapering for Peak Performance

Part 5: How to Find Out More

20

Structure and Organization of Swimming

21

Useful Addresses

Glossary

Index

PREFACE

Swimming is a popular activity, at once a sport, a recreational pursuit and a lifesaving skill. It is a well-documented and widespread activity in most countries across the world. Famous swimmers are household names and participating in swimming is second nature to millions. However, there is still a need for many to fully understand the sport, and to improve their techniques and their competitive performances.

Early references to the activity are to be found in the Old Testament, and the first organized national competition is known to have taken place in England in 1869. As a measure of the progress of swimming and its global appeal, the World Swimming Championships of 2005 had more than 2,000 competitors from 157 countries participating in such diverse activities as Swimming, Water Polo, Diving, Open-Water Swimming and Synchronized Swimming.

Recent Government policies relating to education, such as the National Curriculum in England and Wales, have led to a strong lobby for swimming to be included as an entitlement for all children. At the most basic level, every child should have the opportunity to learn a potentially lifesaving skill, and to become familiar with an activity that can provide lifelong enjoyment.

The aim of this book is to improve the swimming ability of all readers, young or old, novice or expert. Through a series of chapters that are easy to read and understand, the sport of swimming is explained and the strokes developed, from beginner stages through to advanced competition level. Advice on training, racing and coaching is given, with sample sessions and race strategies from champion swimmers and coaches.

CHAPTER 1

THE SPORT – HISTORY, STROKES AND RULES

History

The English are credited with the development of swimming as a competitive sport. By the mid-nineteenth century (around 1840), regular swimming competitions were being held in London’s six artificial pools, organized by the National Swimming Society in England. As the sport grew in popularity, many more pools were built, and when a new governing body, the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA), was formed, in 1880, it numbered more than 300 member clubs.

The first modern Olympic Games in 1896 incorporated only four swimming events, three of them Frontcrawl (more commonly known today as Freestyle). The second Olympics, in Paris in 1900, included three highly unusual swimming events: one used an obstacle course; another was a test of underwater swimming endurance; and the third was a 4,000m event, still the longest Olympic swimming event ever. None of the three was ever used in the Olympics again. The first-ever Olympic swimming event was a 100m Freestyle race between three Greek sailors across the Bay of Zea, which started with the rivals jumping from rowing boats. The winner was Ioannis Malokins in 2 minutes and 20 seconds. The Backstroke event was introduced in Paris (1900) and Breaststroke surfaced as an Olympic stroke in 1908 at the London Games. Almost half a century passed before a fourth stroke event, Butterfly, was added, in 1956 at the Melbourne Games. The first indication of the modern race programme emerged in St Louis, in 1904, yet it was still only men competing at this time. For a variety of reasons, women were excluded from swimming in the early years of the modern Olympic Games, and they raced for the first time only in 1912, in Stockholm. In 1896 and again in 1900, women were not permitted to participate because the developer of the modern Olympics, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, believed in the commonly held assumption of the Victorian era, that women were too frail to engage in competitive sports.

Swimming soon became one of the glamour events of the Olympic Games and today a ticket for an Olympic swimming session is a much sought-after commodity. Exposure through the sport opened up significant opportunities to a number of swimmers, such as Duke Kahanamoku (USA), who won the 1912 and 1920 Freestyle sprint titles. Johnny Weissmuller, the American who became the first to swim under a minute for the 100m Freestyle, is perhaps the most famous pre-Second World War swimmer. His sporting success attracted the attention of Hollywood producers, and he went on to star in the early Tarzan movies. Another film star to start his career in the pool was 1932 Olympic champion Buster Crabbe (better known later as Flash Gordon). Crabbe got his passport to Hollywood by taking the 400m Freestyle title, winning by what he described as ‘the tenth of a second that changed my life’.

More recently, Mark Spitz’s seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich Games assured his legendary status as a worldwide sporting superstar and, at the 2004 Athens Olympics, American Michael Phelps and Australian Ian Thorpe confirmed their positions as global sporting icons. Incidentally, at those same Athens Games, the Dutch swimmer Pieter Van den Hoogenband’s winning time of 48.17 seconds for the Men’s 100m Freestyle was more than 1 minute 30 seconds faster than Malokins’ efforts in that first-ever Olympic swim.

KEY POINT

The competitive events for Olympic swimming are:

•Freestyle: 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m (women), 1500m (men)

•Backstroke: 100m, 200m

•Breaststroke: 100m, 200m

•Butterfly: 100m, 200m

•Individual Medley: 200m, 400m

•Relays: 4 x 100m Freestyle, 4 x 100m Medley, 4 x 200m Freestyle

In World, European and Commonwealth competitions, there are also 50m events for Butterfly, Backstroke and Breaststroke.

The Strokes

The evolution of the four competitive strokes is shown in Fig 1.

Freestyle is the most popular stroke. Technically, within the rules, Freestyle competitors may use whatever stroke they like, but freestyle (originally known as frontcrawl) is the quickest. Causes of disqualification are few, but include swimming outside your lane, walking along the bottom of the pool and not touching the wall at the turn or finish.

Backstroke resembles freestyle swimming as far as the alternating movements of arms and legs are concerned. When starting, competitors take their place in the pool facing the wall and holding the starting blocks with both hands. Apart from failing to complete the race on their back, another common cause for disqualification is crossing the 15m mark underwater from the start or turns.

Breaststroke is a fairly complex swimming style, calling for smooth coordination of the arm and leg movements. In direct contrast to freestyle and backstroke, the arms and legs must move simultaneously and in the same plane. Often mistakenly referred to as simply circling the hands and feet, breaststroke is the slowest of the four strokes and is the most controversial in terms of competitive disqualifications. Common causes of disqualification are touching the wall with one hand during the turn, performing a butterfly kick on the turn, or bringing the hands past the hips when pulling.

Fig 1 The development of the four competitive strokes.

Butterfly is arguably the most spectacular swimming style. The swimmer’s body undulates in a way that resembles the movements of a dolphin. The legs move simultaneously, with the arms arcing low over the water on the recovery, while the momentum of the whole body is used to propel the athlete forward. Common causes for disqualification are touching the wall with one hand during the turn, or using alternating motions of the arms or legs.

In Individual Medley events, the swimmer competes in every swimming stroke at equal distances. This event combines technique, speed and endurance, and is the aquatic equivalent of the Decathlon or Heptathlon in athletics. The sequence of strokes is as follows: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle.

Four swimmers from the same team compete in the Relay events. For the Freestyle Relay, all swimmers use this fastest stroke (although, technically speaking, any stroke would comply with the rules). Medley Relays use all four strokes, with the following sequence: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle. Backstroke is the first stroke because it allows the swimmers to start in the water and then change strokes safely with dive starts thereafter. Relay changeovers are valid when the feet of the outgoing swimmer detach from the blocks at least 3/100 of a second after the fingers of the incoming swimmer touch the wall. If the outgoing swimmer moves too early, his or her team is disqualified.

Fig 2 Freestyle.© Steve Lindridge iDEAL iMAGES (Scotland)

The Rules

The rules as presented here are correct at the time of going to print. The international governing body for swimming, the Fédération Internationale de Natation Amateur (FINA), reviews the rules on a quadrennial basis, with these rules being current until 2017.

SW 4 The Start

SW 4.1 The start in Freestyle, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Individual Medley races shall be with a dive. On the long whistle from the referee the swimmers shall step onto the starting platform and remain there. On the starter’s command ‘take your marks’, they shall immediately take up a starting position with at least one foot at the front of the starting platforms. The position of the hands is not relevant. When all swimmers are stationary, the starter shall give the starting signal.

SW 4.2 The start in Backstroke and Medley Relay races shall be from the water. At the referee’s first long whistle, the swimmers shall immediately enter the water. At the Referee’s second long whistle the swimmers shall return without undue delay to the starting position (SW 6.1). When all swimmers have assumed their starting positions, the starter shall give the command ‘take your marks’. When all swimmers are stationary, the starter shall give the starting signal.

SW 4.3 In Olympic Games, World Championships and other FINA events the command ‘Take your marks’ shall be in English and the start shall be by multiple loudspeakers, mounted one at each starting platform.

SW 4.4 Any swimmer starting before the starting signal has been given, shall be disqualified. If the starting signal sounds before the disqualification is declared, the race shall continue and the swimmer or swimmers shall be disqualified upon completion of the race. If the disqualification is declared before the starting signal, the signal shall not be given, but the remaining swimmers shall be called back and start again. The Referee repeats the starting procedure beginning with the long whistle (the second one for backstroke) as per SW 2.1.5.

SW 5 Freestyle

SW 5.1 Freestyle means that in an event so designated the swimmer may swim any style, except that in Individual Medley or Medley Relay events, freestyle means any style other than backstroke, breaststroke or butterfly.

SW 5.2 Some part of the swimmer must touch the wall upon completion of each length and at the finish.

SW 5.3 Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except it shall be permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn and for a distance of not more than 15 metres after the start and each turn. By that point, the head must have broken the surface.

SW 6 Backstroke

SW 6.1 Prior to the starting signal, the swimmers shall line up in the water facing the starting end, with both hands holding the starting grips. Standing in or on the gutter or bending the toes over the lip of the gutter is prohibited.

SW 6.2 At the signal for starting and after turning the swimmer shall push off and swim upon his back throughout the race except when executing a turn as set forth in SW 6.4. The normal position on the back can include a roll movement of the body up to, but not including 90 degrees from horizontal. The position of the head is not relevant.

SW 6.3 Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race. It is permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn, at the finish and for a distance of not more than 15 metres after the start and each turn. By that point the head must have broken the surface.

SW 6.4 When executing the turn there must be a touch of the wall with some part of the swimmer’s body in his/her respective lane. During the turn the shoulders may be turned over the vertical to the breast after which an immediate continuous single arm pull or immediate continuous simultaneous double arm pull may be used to initiate the turn. The swimmer must have returned to the position on the back upon leaving the wall.

SW 6.5 Upon the finish of the race the swimmer must touch the wall while on the back in his/her respective lane.

Fig 3 Backstroke.© Steve Lindridge iDEAL iMAGES (Scotland)

SW 7 Breaststroke

SW 7.1 After the start and after each turn, the swimmer may take one arm stroke completely back to the legs during which the swimmer may be submerged. A single butterfly kick is permitted during the first arm stroke followed by a breaststroke kick.

SW 7.2 From the beginning of the first arm stroke after the start and after each turn, the body shall be on the breast. It is not permitted to roll onto the back at any time except at the turn after the touch of the wall where it is permissible to turn in any manner as long as the body is on the breast when leaving the wall. From the start and throughout the race the stroke cycle must be one arm stroke and one leg kick in that order. All movements of the arms shall be simultaneous and on the same horizontal plane without alternating movement.

SW 7.3 The hands shall be pushed forward together from the breast on, under, or over the water. The elbows shall be under water except for the final stroke before the turn, during the turn and for the final stroke at the finish. The hands shall be brought back on or under the surface of the water. The hands shall not be brought back beyond the hip line, except during the first stroke after the start and each turn.

SW 7.4 During each complete cycle, some part of the swimmer’s head must break the surface of the water. The head must break the surface of the water before the hands turn inward at the widest part of the second stroke. All movements of the legs shall be simultaneous and on the same horizontal plane without alternating movement.

SW 7.5 The feet must be turned outwards during the propulsive part of the kick. Alternating movements or downward butterfly kicks are not permitted except as in SW 7.1. Breaking the surface of the water with the feet is allowed unless followed by a downward butterfly kick.

SW 7.6 At each turn and at the finish of the race, the touch shall be made with both hands separated and simultaneously at, above, or below the water level. At the last stroke before the turn and at the finish an arm stroke not followed by a leg kick is permitted. The head may be submerged after the last arm pull prior to the touch, provided it breaks the surface of the water at some point during the last complete or incomplete cycle preceding the touch.

Fig 4 Breaststroke.© Steve Lindridge iDEAL iMAGES (Scotland)

SW 8 Butterfly

SW 8.1 From the beginning of the first arm stroke after the start and each turn, the body shall be kept on the breast. Underwater kicking on the side is allowed. It is not permitted to roll onto the back at any time, except at the turn after the touch of the wall where it is permissible to turn in any manner as long as the body is on the breast when leaving the wall.

SW 8.2 Both arms shall be brought forward together over the water and brought backward simultaneously throughout the race, subject to SW 8.5.

SW 8.3 All up and down movements of the legs must be simultaneous. The legs or the feet need not be on the same level, but they shall not alternate in relation to each other. A breaststroke kicking movement is not permitted.

SW 8.4 At each turn and at the finish of the race, the touch shall be made with both hands separated and simultaneously, at, above or below the water surface.

SW 8.5 At the start and at turns, a swimmer is permitted one or more leg kicks and one arm pull under the water, which must bring him to the surface. It shall be permissible for a swimmer to be completely submerged for a distance of not more than 15 metres after the start and after each turn. By that point, the head must have broken the surface. The swimmer must remain on the surface until the next turn or finish.

Fig 5 Butterfly.© Steve Lindridge iDEAL iMAGES (Scotland)

SW 9 Medley Swimming

SW 9.1 In individual medley events, the swimmer covers the four swimming strokes in the following order: Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle. Each of the strokes must cover one quarter (1/4) of the distance.

SW 9.2 In medley relay events, swimmers will cover the four swimming strokes in the following order: Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Freestyle.

SW 9.3 Each section must be finished in accordance with the rule which applies to the stroke concerned.

SW 10 The Race

SW 10.1 All individual races must be held as separate gender events.

SW 10.2 A swimmer swimming over the course alone shall cover the whole distance to qualify.

SW 10.3 The swimmer must remain and finish the race in the same lane in which he/she started.

SW 10.4 In all events, a swimmer when turning shall make physical contact with the end of the pool or course. The turn must be made from the wall, and it is not permitted to take a stride or step from the bottom of the pool.

SW 10.5 Standing on the bottom during freestyle events or during the freestyle portion of medley events shall not disqualify a swimmer, but he shall not walk.

SW 10.6 Pulling on the lane rope is not allowed.

SW 10.7 Obstructing another swimmer by swimming across another lane or otherwise interfering shall disqualify the offender. Should the foul be intentional, the referee shall report the matter to the Member promoting the race, and to the Member of the swimmer so offending.

SW 10.8 No swimmer shall be permitted to use or wear any device or swimsuit that may aid his/her speed, buoyancy or endurance during a competition (such as webbed gloves, flippers, fins, power bands, or adhesive substances, etc.). Goggles may be worn. Any kind of tape on the body is not permitted unless approved by FINA Sport Medicine Committee.

SW 10.9 Any swimmer not entered in a race, who enters the water in which an event is being conducted before all swimmers therein have completed the race, shall be disqualified from his next scheduled race in the meet.

SW 10.10 There shall be four swimmers on each relay team. Mixed relays may be swum. Mixed Relays must consist of two (2) Men and two (2) Women. Split times achieved in these events cannot be used for records and/or entry purposes.

SW 10.11 In relay events, the team of a swimmer whose feet lose touch with the starting platform before the preceding team-mate touches the wall shall be disqualified.

SW 10.12 Any relay team shall be disqualified from a race if a team member, other than the swimmer designated to swim that length, enters the water when the race is being conducted, before all swimmers of all teams have finished the race.

SW 10.13 The members of a relay team and their order of competing must be nominated before the race. Any relay team member may compete in a race only once. The composition of a relay team may be changed between the heats and finals of an event, provided that it is made up from the list of swimmers properly entered by a Member for that event. Failure to swim in the order listed will result in disqualification. Substitutions may be made only in the case of a documented medical emergency.

SW 10.14 Any swimmer having finished his race, or his distance in a relay event, must leave the pool as soon as possible without obstructing any other swimmer who has not yet finished his race. Otherwise the swimmer committing the fault, or his relay team, shall be disqualified.

SW 10.15 Should a foul endanger the chance of success of a swimmer, the referee shall have the power to allow him to compete in the next heat or, should the foul occur in a final event or in the last heat, he/she may order it to be re-swum.

SW 10.16 No pace-making shall be permitted, nor may any device be used or plan adopted which has that effect.

CHAPTER 2

GETTING STARTED – FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT

Facilities

Olympic champions have trained in pools of many different sizes, but the standard units of competitive swimming are short-course (25m) or long-course (50m) pools. Sometimes likened to the differences between indoor and outdoor athletics, performances in short- and long-course pools differ greatly from each other. Short-course pools are very common in the UK and are usually around six lanes wide (15m) and operated by local authorities. SeeFig 6 for a short-course set-up. Races in short-course pools have more turns and therefore are faster by up to 2–3 seconds per 100m on some strokes.

Long-course pools are the standard size for the Olympic Games and must be ten lanes wide (25m) to accommodate international competition requirements. SeeFig 7 for a long-course set-up at the National Swimming Academy in Stirling. There are only twenty long-course pools in the UK (just over half the number in the Australian city of Sydney, which has thirty-seven!), and only one of these (Sheffield) meets the international competition standard of being ten lanes wide. The lack of long-course facilities in Britain is often cited as a limiting factor in improving elite-level performance.

Fig 6 A short-course set-up.

Fig 7 A long-course pool.

The sport of swimming across the world is based on a club structure. The system of a series of progressive squads is commonly used to develop performance. They are arranged according to age and ability and the limiting factor is usually the availability of sufficient time and space. The normal pool set-up for a squad training session in a six-lane x 25m pool is illustrated in Fig 8.

Fig 8 Pool layout and lane patterns.

In terms of organization, alternate lanes swim in a clockwise and anti-clockwise direction for safety reasons, to avoid collisions. Swimmers are normally allocated to lanes according to speed. Some coaches may also assign lanes according to stroke specialisms. Other essential facility requirements are the following:

•backstroke (turning) flags, set 5m from the wall so that swimmers can count their strokes before turns and finishes;

•lane lines (ropes), to divide the pool into lanes and organize groups;

•starting blocks (platforms), to practise competitive starts and relay changeovers; and

•pace (sweep) clocks, to time swims, rest intervals and spacing of swimmers.

Kit

It is essential that the correct equipment is used in developing a swimmer’s ability. The main essentials are obvious – trunks or a swimsuit – but a variety of other ‘gear’ can be used to improve performance.

•Goggles: these are a must from the very beginning of swimming lessons, not only protecting the eyes from chemicals, but also helping swimmers to see techniques below the surface.

•