CAGUYA, Jessica S. Grade 11 St.

Nicholas
GASPAY, Kristine Bea

Swimming

What is Swimming?
Swimming, in recreation and sports, the propulsion of the body through water by combined arm
and leg motions and the natural flotation of the body. Swimming as an exercise is popular as an
all-around body developer and is particularly useful in therapy and as exercise for physically
handicapped persons. Swimming is an aquatic game played individually or by team of four
relays either on a 25 meter pool or 50 meter pool separated by lane ropes. The objective of the
game is to complete the required distance to finish the course by touching the wall.

Historical Background
Swimming can be dated back to the Stone Age, but did not truly become an organized sport until
the early 19th century. Prehistoric man learned to swim in order to cross rivers and lakes
evidenced by cave paintings from the Stone Age depicting swimmers found in Egypt. Swimming
was also referred to in Greek mythology. Swimming was not widely practiced until the early 19 th
century, when the National Swimming Society of Great Britain began to hold competitions. Most
early swimmers used to breaststroke, or form of it.
Based on a stroke used by native South Americans, the first version of the crawl featured a
scissor kick. In the late 1880s, an Englishman named Frederick Cavill travelled to the South
Seas, where he saw the natives performing a crawl with a flutter kick. Cavill settled in Australia,
where he taught the stroke that was to become the famous Australian crawl. Swimming has
featured on the program of all editions of the Games since 1896. The very first Olympic events
were freestyle (crawl) or breaststroke. Backstroke was added in 1904.

Basic Skill Swimming

1. Breathing
This is a frequently overlooked basic skill, but it is an important one. If are not
comfortable breathing while swimming, you won't be able to enjoy it completely and
learn new things. The basic idea is that you need to breathe out with both your nose and
mouth when your head is underwater.
2. Gliding
While swimming happens before a stoke begins, between stroke after a flip turn or at the
of lap. Proper gliding technique allows a swimmer o maintain momentum while
preparing for the next stroke.
3. Coordination
Coordination and balance are sign of strength and are tied to vitality and overall quality
of life, not just athletic performance. Working on coordination and balance is important
part of strength- training regimen, especially for adult athletes as they experience age
related muscle loss.
4. Breaststroke
 It is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not
rotate. However at the competitive level, swimming breaststroke at speed requires
comparable endurance and strength to other strokes. Some people prefer to breaststroke
as the “frog” stroke, as the arms and legs move somewhat like frog swimming in the
waters.
5. Diving
Diving is another equally important skill that you would use in almost every swimming
session. Learning to dive ensures that you safely enter the pool/water. You can begin by
putting your hands above your head and slowly curling your body towards the water. It
would feel difficult at the start but you should focus on landing your arms first and follow
with the rest of your body.
6. Back Stroke
The backstroke, or back crawl, uses alternating and opposite arm movements. As one arm
pulls through the water from an overhead position to the hip, the other arm recovers
above the water from the hip to the overhead position and vice versa.
7. Butterfly
The butterfly stroke, used only in competition, differs from the breaststroke in arm action.
In the butterfly the arms are brought forward above the water. The frog kick originally
used was abandoned for a fishtail (dolphin) kick, depending only on up-and-down
movement of the legs. Later swimmers used two dolphin kicks to one arm pull. Breathing
is done in sprint competition by raising the head every second or third stroke.
8. Crawl or Freestyle
The crawl, the stroke used in competitive freestyle swimming, has become the fastest of
all strokes. It is also the almost unanimous choice of stroke for covering any considerable
distance. In the crawl, the body lies prone, flat on the surface of the water, with the legs
kept slightly under the water. The arms move alternately, timed so that one will start
pulling just before the other has finished its pull, thus making propulsion continuous.
Breathing is done by turning the head to either side during recovery of the arm from that
side
9. Side stroke
Named because the swimmer lies on one side with asymmetric arm leg and motion, the
side stroke is helpful as a lifesaving technique and is often used for long distance
swimming. This is an older swimming style that is not typically used in swim
competitions, but is still an important stroke to learn for safety reasons. It is most
commonly used by lifeguards when they rescue someone, as this stroke most easily
allows you to pull something along with you.
10. Floating position
Learning how to float and tread water is essential. If you accidentally fall in the water or
cannot make it to the edge of the pool, knowing how to float or tread water can help you
until someone comes to help.
Floating on your back is usually easiest. When teaching children to float, stay in waist-
deep water and support them from their backs until they can float on their own. For
adults, it's easier to learn to float in chest-deep water, but be sure to have someone there
to support you if you need it.

Facilities and Equipment

1. Pool
Length: 50 meters (164)
Width: 25.0 meters (82.0)
Depth: a minimum depth of 1.35 meters extending from 1.0 meter to at least 6.0 meters
from the end wall is required for pools with starting blocks. A minimum depth of meter is
required elsewhere.
Volume: 2500,000 L (550,000 imp gal; 660,000 US gal) assuming depth of 2m. 2,500
m3 ( 88,000 cu ft) in cubic units about 2 acre- feet.
Walls: end walls vertical, parallel and from 90 degree right angles to the swimming and
to the surface of the water. They shall be constructed of solid material with a nonslip
surface extending 0.8 meters below the water so as to enable the competitor to touch and
push off in turning without hazard. Rest ledges along the pool walls are permitted; they
must be not less then 1.2 metes below the water surface and may be 0.1 meters to 0.15
meters wide. Both internal and external ledges are acceptable, however internal ledges
are preferred. Gutters may be placed on all four walls of the pool. If end all gutters are
installed, they must allow for attachment of touch panels to the required 0.3 meter about
water surface. They must be covered with suitable grill or screen.

2. Lane -10 lanes at least 2.5 meters wide, with two spaces at least 0.2 meter outside of
the first and last lanes.
3. Lane ropes- each lane rope will consist of floats placed end to end having a
minimum diameter of 0.10 mete to a maximum of 0.15 meter. In a swimming pool
the color of the lane ropes should be as follows
2 green ropes for lanes 1 and 8
4 blue rope for lanes 2, 3, 6 and 7
3 yellow ropes for lanes 4 and 5
4. Starting platforms- the height of the platform above the water surface shall be from
0.5 meter to 0.75 meter. The surface are shall be at least 0.5 meter x 0.5 meter and
covered with non- slip material. Maximum slope shall not be more than 10 degrees.
The platform shall be constructed so as to permit the griping of the platform by the
swimmer in the forward start at the front and the sides; it is recommended that if the
thickness of the starting platform exceeds 0.04 meters, grips at least 0.1 meter width
on each side 0.4 meter width in the front be cut out to 0.03 meter from the surface of
the platform. Handgrips for the forward start may be installed on the sides of the
starting platforms. Handgrips for backstroke starts shall be laced within 0.3 meter to
0.6 meter above the water surface both horizontally and vertically. They shall be
parallel to the surface of the end wall and must not protrude beyond the end wall.
5. Backstroke turn indicators- flagged ropes shall be suspended across the pool, 1.8
meters above the water surface, from fixed standards placed 5.0 meters from each end
wall. Distinctive marks must be place on both side of the pool, and where possible on
each lane rope, 15.0 meters from each wall.
6. False start rope- suspended across the pool not less than 1.2 meters above the water
level from fixed standard placed 15.0 meters in front of the starting end.
7. Lane markings- shall be a dark contrasting color, placed on the floor of the pool in
the center of each line. Width minimum 0.2 meter, maximum 0/3 meter. Length 46.0
meters for 50 meter long pools; 21.0 meters for 25 meters long pools.