The Sport of Swimming

When I was 10-years old, I used to swim in a channel which was passing through the paddy fields.

No one taught me the art of swimming.

I learnt it by seeing the others swimming.

At my later age only, I came to know that swimming is an international sport.

One needs proper training to participate in the sport.

However, one has to know how to swim, especially for those who live near water bodies.

Swimming in a village lake is easy, but to swim in the sea we need more practice and sometimes proper training.

Those who live by seashore, fishermen and others like sailors, have to know, how to swim.

Swimming is one of the smart aquatic sports all over the world.

Both men and women participate in it.

Swimming is a very good exercise also for fitness of body and mind.

Those who practice swimming benefit a lot to build up their body.

It is one of the events of Olympic Games.

The standard pool of Olympic Games measures 50 m long, 1.8 m deep, 21 m wide with 8 lanes, and each lane having 2.5 m width.

The temperature of the water is maintained at 24 degrees Celsius.

In the competition, men and women compete in four strokes namely, breast stroke, back stroke, butterfly and free style.

Some races combine all four strokes and are called medleys.

It will be a race against the other swimmer and the clock.

The competition will be watched carefully by the timers, referee, and a number of judges.

Nowadays, electronic touch pads are set at the end of each lane.

They are linked to a timing system programmed to stop the clock when the swimmer touches them.

Individual and relays championships for men and women are 50, 100, 200, 400 m.

For a maximum of 1500 m and for women 800 m for individual are the competition distance.

For the relays, 4 x 100 m and 4 x 200 m are the distances for both men and women competitors.

The world record of swimming speed for men is less than that of women in all the types of swimming.

There is an improvement in speed of swimming over time.

Swimmers must have strength and endurance and they undergo intense physical training.

Taller athletes have better chances of winning because of better reach (both arms and legs).

The best swimmers come from Russia, the US, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe.

Training the young ones to learn swimming has to be popularized to get the best swimmers of the world.

Let us hope the world record is beaten every year by the efficient athletes.

By the by do you know how to swim?