The Interaction Between Intra-Cyclic Variation of the Velocity and Mean Swimming Velocity in Young Competitive Swimmers

The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the intra-cyclic variation of the horizontal velocity (dv) and the velocity of the 4 competitive swimming techniques in young swimmers. 45 young swimmers performed a set of maximal 4 x 25 m (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly stroke) swims with in water start. A speed-meter cable was attached to the swimmer's hip. The dv and the swimming velocity were analyzed. Within-subject tests presented significant variations in the dv based on the swimming technique. Post-hoc test revealed significant differences across all pair-wised swimming techniques (P < 0.001), except for the comparison between freestyle and backstroke (P = 0.98). The dv was higher in the breaststroke, followed by the butterfly, the backstroke and the freestyle. The quadratic models had the best goodness-of-fit and the lower error of estimation for the relationship between the dv and the swimming velocity in all swimming techniques (0.24 <= R-2 <= 0.51). As a conclusion, there is a non-linear relationship where the increase of swimming velocity leads to a decrease of dv in young competitive swimmers.