Swim FAQ
What are the different strokes in swimming?
Freestyle: The freestyle stroke, also known as front crawl, is the fastest and most efficient of the swimming strokes used in competition.
Backstroke: The backstroke, or back crawl, uses alternating and opposite arm movements. As the name suggests, it is the only one of the four competitive swimming strokes swum on the back.
Breast Stroke: The breaststroke is swum with the body facing down. The arms perform semicircular movements, and the legs perform a frog kick. This style allows you to swim with your head above the water and therefore breathe freely and keep your eyes open. This can be helpful for beginners and more casual swimmers.
Butterfly: The butterfly (shortened to fly) is a swum on the chest, with both arms moving symmetrically, accompanied by the butterfly kick (also known as the "dolphin kick") along with the movement of the hips and chest.
What is a Heat Sheet?
This is the printed listing displayed before and during a meet that tells swimmers what events they will compete in. It also defines the swimmer's lane assignment per event. Lanes are typically assigned based on seed times, with the fastest swimmers in the center of the pool. Events are listed in order, usually alternating girls and boys events
Important Terms:
Seed time is the fastest time a swimmer or team of swimmers has swum an event prior to the submission of entries for the meet. For individuals, this is the time entered for the swimmer for the event, and is a good goal to try to beat. It also factors into lane placement and heat number.
An “NT” listed for seed time means no seed time has yet been recorded for that swimmer, i.e. that swimmer has not competed in that event, or was disqualified during the event.
Individual Medleys (IM) are swum in order: 1) Butterfly, 2) Backstroke, 3) Breaststroke, 4) Freestyle. It’s important for swimmers to know the order, because any other order will result in a disqualification or “DQ”
Lengths of Swims: 50 yards - 2 lengths of the 25 yard pool 100 yards - 4 lengths of the 25 yard pool 200 yards - 8 lengths of the 25 yard pool
Relays Lengths: 100 yard relay - each of the 4 swimmers swims 25 yards. 200 yard relay - each of the 4 swimmers swims 50 yards. 400 yard relay- each of the 4 swimmers swims 100 yards.
Freestyle Relays: Each individual swims an equal leg of the race, split into four legs. Freestyle relays list the swimmer order in the same manner as the Medley Relay example below.
Medley Relays: are swum in order: 1) Backstroke, 2) Breaststroke, 3) Butterfly, 4) Freestyle.
Accordingly, in the relay event below, Megan Chow will swim backstroke, Kaleigh Gale the breaststroke, Grace Morgan the butterfly, and Alexia Hawkins the freestyle. They will swim in Heat 1, Lane 4. Their team has not yet received a legal seed time and is also an exhibition race, so they have “XNT.” This means that their relay time will receive a time, but do not score points for the team. This team is in the age group that swims two lengths of the pool, or 50 meters, each, which is reflected in the 200 yard event distance.
