Swimming
Number of medal events
34: (16 men’s and 16 women’s events in the pool, plus two Marathon Swimming events)
Number of competitors
950 (900 in pool events, 50 in Marathon Swimming)
Each country is limited to two athletes in each individual event and one team in each relay event.
Field of play
The swimming pool is 50m long, 25m wide and 3m deep. It is divided into 10 lanes, although only the centre eight are used for competition.
History of Swimming at the Olympic Games
At the first few modern Olympic Games, Swimming events were held in open water. At Paris in 1900, for instance, they took place in the River Seine. However, the rules were formalised in 1908, when the London Games staged the first Olympic Swimming competition to be held in a pool. Women’s events were introduced at the Stockholm 1912 Games.
Find out more about Swimming at the Olympic Games on the International Olympic Committee website.
The basics
There are four strokes used in Olympic competition: Freestyle (essentially, front crawl), Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly. All four strokes feature in the Individual Medley and Medley Relay events. Swimmers also compete in the Freestyle Relay events.
Olympic races in the pool are conducted over a variety of distances, from 50m (one length of the pool) all the way up to 1500m (30 lengths). The first athlete to touch the electronic finishing touchpad at the end of the pool in each race is the winner.
Competition format
Races start with heats, the number of which depends on the number of swimmers in the event. Swimmers are seeded according to FINA rules, based on the final entry lists. These seedings are used to determine the heat each swimmer starts in – the top seeds are placed in different heats. Seedings are also used to determine the lane each athlete swim in – the higher the seeding, the closer to the centre lanes of the pool.
For 50m, 100m and 200m events, the top 16 swimmers from the heats progress to the semi-finals, and the top eight from these compete in the final. As in the heats, the swimmers’ seedings are used to decide which semi-final they swim in and which lane they are allocated. In 400m, 800m, 1500m and relay events, swimmers progress from the heats straight to the final.
Officials
Swimming events need many officials including timekeepers, start and finish judges, stroke judges, turn judges and an overall chief referee who is in charge of the competition.
Keys to success
For all events, getting a good start is paramount. Different events have different starts, either by diving in or starting in the water. Good stroke technique can make the difference between winning and losing, as can making fast turns and a good finish. The winning swimmers should have all parts of their race technique honed to perfection, including the changeovers in the Relay events.
Breaking the rules
While the start for all swimmers is crucial, a false start results in disqualification. Judges also look closely to check that stroke and turning techniques are legal and that in the Relay events each swimmer touches the end of the pool before his/her teammate leaves the starting blocks. Infringements of any kind are reported to the chief referee, who decides on any penalty to impose.
Jargon buster
Long course – a 50m pool of the type used in Olympic competition, as opposed to a short course measuring 25m.
Medley – a combination event in which a swimmer or team swims separate legs of backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and freestyle.
Negative split – when an athlete swims the second half of a race faster than the first half.
Open turn – a type of turn in which swimmers must touch the end of the pool with their hands.
Tumble turn – an underwater roll at the end of a lap, which allows swimmers to push off from the end of the pool with their feet.
Synchronised Swimming
2 – Duet competition and Team competition.
Number of competitors
104 – Synchronised Swimming is one of two Olympic disciplines contested only by women (the other is Rhythmic Gymnastics). The eight countries with entrants in both the Duets and the Teams events are limited to nine athletes in total, from which two compete in the Duets event and eight compete in the Teams event. The remaining 16 countries compete only in the Duets event and are limited to two athletes.
Field of play
Part of the pool used for Swimming events is used for this competition. The area used for Synchronised Swimming is 30m long, 25m wide and 3m deep.
History of Synchronised Swimming at the Olympic Games
Synchronised Swimming grew out of the ornamental water ballets of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which became popular in Europe and the US thanks to pioneers such as Australian swimmer Annette Kellerman. The first competitions were held in the 1930s, five decades before the sport made its Olympic debut at the Los Angeles 1984.
Find out more about Synchronised Swimming at the Olympic Games on the International Olympic Committee website.
The basics
Aided by underwater speakers, duets or teams of eight swimmers perform short routines to a musical accompaniment. Judges mark a variety of components during the course of a routine, including choreography, difficulty and execution.
Competition format
In the Duets event, each duet performs a technical routine and a free routine preliminary as part of the preliminary phase. The total combined scores determine which 12 duets progress to the final, where each of them performs a free routine final. The results are determined by the combination of the scores from the technical routine during the preliminary phase and the free routine final.
In the Teams event, each team performs a technical routine and a free routine. The total of the two scores determines the competition results.
Officials
In the technical routine, one panel judges the execution, including the required elements. The other panel is looking at the overall impression: choreography, synchronisation, difficulty and manner of presentation.
In the free routine, the technical merit judges score the difficulty and execution of strokes/movements as well as the synchronisation of the swimmers. The other panel is looking at artistic impression, which includes choreography, music interpretation and manner of presentation.
Keys to success
Although it looks deceptively graceful from the pool side, Synchronised Swimming is an extremely demanding sport calling for great strength, endurance and flexibility. Swimmers use nose clips to help them stay underwater for longer, but the sport still requires tremendous breath control.
Every detail of the routine is judged and swimmers must be perfectly synchronised – all eight of them in the Teams event – if they are to score highly.
Breaking the rules
Judges can award point deductions for a variety of infringements, including taking too long on the deck before the swimmers enter the pool, making deliberate use of the bottom of the pool or missing out any of the compulsory elements of the technical routine.
Jargon buster
Back layout – a position in which the swimmer holds herself flat and face up on the water’s surface while sculling.
Deckwork – the initial movements performed by swimmers after the music starts but before they enter the water.
Eggbeater – powerful way of treading water that allows the swimmer to perform arm movements while staying afloat.
Scull – underwater hand movements designed to move and support the body in the pool.
Water Polo
One men’s and one women’s competition.
Number of competitors
156 men and 104 women
Each country is limited to one team in the men’s and one team in the women’s events. Twelve teams compete in the men’s competition, eight in the women’s. Teams consist of 13 players, but only seven are allowed in the water at any one time.
Field of play
The Water Polo pitch at London 2012 is 20m wide and 30m long for the men’s event, and 25m long for the women’s event. It is 2m deep (there is no shallow end). The goals at either end are 3m wide and 90cm high.
History of Water Polo at the Olympic Games
Developed during the 19th century, men’s Water Polo has featured on every Olympic programme since the Paris 1900 Games. Women’s Water Polo was introduced at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
Find out more about Water Polo at the Olympic Games on the International Olympic Committee website.
The basics
Played by teams of seven in a pool with a goal at each end, Water Polo is a thrilling spectacle.
Matches are divided into four periods of eight minutes. Starting with a race to the ball at the centre of the pitch, each team has only 30 seconds to attempt to score before the ball is returned to the opposition.
Players aren’t allowed to touch the sides or the bottom of the pool during play, and may swim as much as three miles during a match.
Water Polo allows unlimited substitutions, although substitutes (as well as players who have been excluded for a short period for rule infringements) may enter the water only in a designated area in the corner of the pitch near each team bench.
Competition format
The men’s and women’s competitions at London will both begin with group play. The teams are divided into two groups, and each team will play every other team in its group. In the preliminary rounds teams receive two points for a win, one for a draw and nothing for a loss. From here, the competitions progress through quarter-final and semi-final rounds before the top two teams go head to head for the gold.
Officials
There are two referees, one on each side of the pitch and two goal judges, one at each end. They are assisted by two timekeepers and two secretaries.
On the podium
Water Polo is a fast and physically demanding game. Players need to have strength and stamina, as well as excellent swimming ability, ball skills and the ability to play tactically as a team.
Breaking the rules
Certain infringements, which include holding, sinking and pulling back an opponent who is not in possession of the ball (called ‘exclusion fouls’), can see a player being made to leave the water for up to 20 seconds. This leaves the other team with an extra player, giving them a real advantage.
Jargon buster
Ball under – a foul called on a player for taking or holding the ball underwater when an opponent tackles the player.
Dry pass – a pass in Water Polo that is designed to be caught before the ball hits the water.
Eggbeater – a powerful way of treading water, used in Synchronised Swimming and Water Polo.
Man-up play – players may be ejected for 20 seconds for selected infringements called ‘exclusion fouls’, resulting in a man-up situation for his or her team’s opponents.
Swim-off – a race for the ball in the centre of the pitch to start each period.
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