Does floatation influence breaststroke technique?

This study is aimed at examining the relationships between floatation parameters, assessed by field tests and the stroking characteristics of breaststroke swimmers. The floatation parameters were evaluated for 23 males and 23 females by the hydrostatic lift test, the sinking force acting at the ankle test and the maximal glide length after a push-off from the pool wall test. The swimmers performed two trials at submaximal and sprint pace, and then, from the data given by a PC-video velocity system, the duration and velocity of their propulsive, recovery and glide phases were analyzed.

Inter-limb coordination in swimming: effect of speed and skill level.

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of swimming speed and skill level on inter-limb coordination and its intra-cyclic variability. The elbow-knee continuous relative phase (CRP) was used as the order parameter to analyze upper-lower limbs coupling during a complete breaststroke cycle. Twelve recreational and 12 competitive female swimmers swam 25m at a slow speed and 25m at maximal speed.

Arm-leg coordination in recreational and competitive breaststroke swimmers.

The aims of this study were to assess the durations of the different arm and leg stroke phases (propulsion, glide, and recovery) and the temporal arm-leg gaps between 12 competitive and 12 recreational breaststroke swimmers. The mean ages and best times for a 50-m breaststroke were, respectively, (recreational: 16.9+/-1.