Swimming Pools

Swimming Pools : Swimming pool contractors, design and maintenance

Swimming
The art of self-support or movement, using the hands and feet in or on water. Swimming is not only a means of survival but is also a valuable tool in physical therapy and one of the most beneficial forms of general exercise.
Formal swimming instruction is important in order to learn how to coordinate arm and leg movements and to learn how to breathe correctly. Five recognized strokes have evolved since the late 19th century. They are the crawl, the alternating arm backstroke, the breaststroke, the butterfly, and the sidestroke.
In the crawl, one of the swimmer's arms moves through the air as the other arm pulls back under the water. The legs move in a flutter kick, an alternating up-and-down movement from the hips, with the legs relaxed, the toes pointed, and the feet turned inward. One full breath can be taken in each arm cycle, with the swimmer inhaling by turning the head to the side as the arm passes, then exhaling underwater as the arm comes forward again. In the backstroke the swimmer lies face up in the water and alternately lifts one arm from beside the leg up behind the head while the other arm pulls the body through the water. The legs flutter kick.
In the breaststroke the swimmer lies front down, arms pointing straight ahead and then swept backward in line with the shoulders. The legs are drawn up close to the body and thrust outward as the arms are brought back to the starting point. The swimmer exhales underwater. In the butterfly both arms are brought forward together over the water and then brought backward simultaneously. The movement of the arms is continuous and is accompanied by an undulating movement of the hips. The leg kick, called the dolphin kick, is a whiplike downward motion of the feet.
The sidestroke is helpful as a lifesaving technique and is appropriate for long-distance swimming. The swimmer, lying on either side of the body, moves the arms alternately. The arm under the water pulls from below the body, up above the head, forward and out, and then back down to the thigh; the upper arm sweeps down to the thigh and then pulls forward again up to the chest. The legs open slowly and then come together sharply, executing a propelling scissor kick.
Competition
Swimming was one of the sports in the first modern Olympic Games held in Athens, Greece, in 1896. The FŽdŽration Internationale de Natation Amateur (FINA; International Federation of Amateur Swimming) is the international governing body for competitive swimming. In the United States the governing body of the sport is United States Swimming.
Individual races are classified according to the stroke required and the distance covered. In relay races, teams usually consist of four swimmers who race in turn using a single stroke. In medley races, all four types of competition strokes÷crawl, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly÷must be used. In an individual medley race each competitor must swim an equal distance in each stroke. In a medley relay, four swimmers compete as a team, with each one swimming an equal distance in a different stroke.


Synchronized Swimming
A water sport in which contestants perform choreographed maneuvers set to music. Three competitive events are recognized internationally: solo, duet, and team (consisting of eight swimmers). Synchronized swimmers compete in three categories: figures, technical routine, and free routine.
In the figures competition, swimmers perform 4 of a possible 20 figures, or combinations of movements. In the technical routine, the swimmers perform a set list of elements and swimming strokes in a prescribed order. In the free routine, swimmers create their own choreography of figures and strokes. The scores for the figures and the routines are combined for each competitor to determine the winner.
Synchronized swimming was developed from water ballet, which was first performed in the early 20th century. It became a competitive event in the Pan American Games in 1955 in Mexico City, and it debuted with solo and duet events at the Olympic Games in 1984 in Los Angeles. Only the solo and duet competitions were held at the 1984, 1988, and 1992 Olympics. For the 1996 games in Atlanta, Georgia, team competition replaced the solo and duet categories.