Background: Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) is an effective exogenous neuromuscular activation method widely used in sports training and rehabilitation. However, existing research primarily focuses on land-based sports or single-joint mov...
Breaststroke performance is highly dependent on lower-limb biomechanics and the coordination of movement during the kick cycle. Recent advances in wearable inertial sensor technology enable objective analysis of human motion in real training environm...
Background: Breaststroke performance in young swimmers is influenced by a complex interaction of anthropometric, physiological, and technical factors. However, existing studies predominantly focus on pre-selected or elite youth swimmers, limiting ins...
20 June 2021
Here we describe historic variations in Olympic breaststroke and butterfly performance and predict swimming results for the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo. The results of the finalists, winners, and last participants in the women’s and men’s finals were...
Whether acute dry-land preconditioning improves jump height and swimming outcomes in breaststroke remains unclear. This original experimental study used a randomized crossover design to compare two whole-body vibration (WBV) protocols and a unilatera...
27 August 2020
Background and aim: To identify kinematic variables related to short course 100 m breaststroke performance. Methods: An automatic race analysis system was utilized to obtain start (0–15 m), turn (5 m before the wall until 10 m out), finish (95&...
14 February 2021
We compared the hydrodynamic characteristics and pull-out strategies of four backstroke-to-breaststroke turning techniques in young swimmers. Eighteen 11 and 12-year-old swimmers participated in a 4 week intervention program including 16 contextual i...
30 May 2020
Pacing in swimming has been investigated in pool swimming for elite-standard and age group freestyle swimmers, but little is known about pacing in age group swimmers competing at world class level in backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly. The aim o...
Swimming is a kind of complex locomotion that involves the interaction between the human body and the water. Here, to examine the effects of currents on the performance of freestyle and breaststroke swimming, a multi-body Newton-Euler dynamic model o...
The most hydrodynamic swimming position occurs with the head submerged, highlighting the benefit of reduced breathing frequency for efficiency. This study aimed to characterize and compare kinematics between two breaststroke breathing patterns—...
22 February 2022
The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the relationship between anthropometric characteristics, biomechanical variables and performance in the conventional swimming techniques in young and adolescent swimmers. A database search from...
Background: Combining pool-based and resistance workouts, both in the pool and on dry land, is a valuable approach to enhancing swimming performance. However, few investigations have been conducted on this topic. Through a randomized controlled trial...
The speedometer is widely used to evaluate swimming velocity but has some constraints. With the constant development of inertial units (IMUs), it is expected that they will become a good alternative to the speedometer. This study aimed to compare the...
The playful training method shows positive effects on sports learning, thus the aim of the present study was to compare the effect of two different swimming learning programs. In an 8-week intervention with a training frequency of three times per wee...
Spinal cord injuries (SCI) often result in impaired motor functions. To quantify these impairments, swimming patterns were analyzed in individuals with SCI. Water provides a unique rehabilitation environment where buoyancy supports weight-bearing act...
Objectives: The aim of this study was to indicate which variables are the most important determinants of swimming results in the 50 m front crawl among non-elite pre-pubertal female swimmers. Methods: The study group consisted of 14 female swimmers (...
20 October 2022
The purpose of the present study was to investigate differences between world-class individual medley (IM) swimmers and stroke-specialists using race analyses. A total of eighty 200 m races (8 finalists × 2 sexes × 5 events) at the 2021 E...
9 August 2021
In the original article [...]
Artistic swimming is an Olympic sport requiring a high level of fitness, as well as technical skills, artistry, flexibility, a good sense of rhythm, remarkable lung capacity and physical strength. The artistic swimming of adolescents has been largely...
Evaluating force–velocity characteristics on dry-land is of the utmost importance in swimming, because higher levels of these bio-motor abilities positively affect in-water performance. However, the wide range of possible technical specializati...
29 April 2021
The present study investigated swimmers’ performances on the starting and turning segments between individual and relay races. A total number of 72 race performances of the same swimmers in both relay 4 × 100 m finals (freestyle, medley, and mixed fr...
The propulsive forces and instantaneous power that are generated by a swimmer have a great influence on the swimming performance. This works presents a new device, called SwimOne, for measuring propulsive force and estimating the instantaneous power...
The different characteristics of the four swimming strokes affect the interplay between the four limbs, acting as a constraint to the force produced by each hand and foot. The purpose of this study was to analyze the symmetry of force production with...
22 May 2020
In recent years, the interest of female dominance in long-distance swimming has grown where several newspaper articles have been published speculating about female performance and dominance—especially in open-water ultra-distance swimming. The...
The purpose of this research was to determine the expected progression of adolescent female swimming performances using a longitudinal approach. The performances of 514 female swimmers (12–19 year olds) who participated in one or more FINA-regulated...
24 December 2020
Researchers have quantified swimming races for several decades to provide objective information on race strategy and characteristics. The purpose of the present review was to summarize knowledge established in the literature and current issues in swi...
Despite the increasing importance of the underwater segment of start and turns in competition and its positive influence on the subsequent surface swimming, there is no evidence on how the transition from underwater to surface swimming should be perf...
Insufficient data on adolescent athletes is contributing to the challenges facing youth athletic development and accurate talent identification. The purpose of this study was to model the progression of male sub-elite swimmers’ performances during ad...
Swimming is a widely practiced sport with significant physical demands, placing athletes at a considerable risk of injury, particularly in the shoulder, due to repetitive high-intensity movements. The aim of this systematic review was to analyze the...
In a world where technology is assuming a pervasive role, sports sciences are also increasingly exploiting the possibilities opened by advanced sensors and intelligent algorithms. This paper focuses on the development of a convenient, practical, and...
Intracycle velocity variation is a swimming relevant research topic, focusing on understanding the interaction between hydrodynamic propulsive and drag forces. We have performed a systematic scoping review to map the main concepts, sources and types...
Biomechanics and training load monitoring are important for performance evaluation and injury prevention in elite swimming. Monitoring of performance and swim stroke parameters is possible with inertial measurement units (IMU) but has not been valida...
Over the past two decades, Olympic swimming performance has improved. However, less attention has been given to the evolution of Olympic Qualification Time (OQT) standards. This retrospective observational study analyzed event-specific qualification...
Background: Pacing critically influences swimming performance. In master swimmers, aging leads to performance decline, but the age at which pacing becomes unstable, and whether this precedes performance loss, remains unclear. Objective: This cross-se...
The aim of this study was to understand the female swimmers’ annual performance progression and stability between 10 and 18 years across swimming distances and techniques. Data from female Portuguese Top-50 rankings in the short-course pool was...
Objectives: To investigate performance development and variety in swimming strokes of female swimmers from early junior to elite age. Methods: A total of 194,788 race times of female 200 m swimmers representing 77 nations were ranked at peak performa...
The elite swimming calendar became substantially denser after 2020. We examined how the individual-event medalist population at the nine global championships of 2016–2025 changed in age structure, podium tenure, medal accumulation, and turnover...