Faculty of Sports Science and Coaching

NAME AND SUBJECT CODE QSI3041

TITTLE ASSIGNMENT SWIMMING SKILLS (A)

NAME OF GROUP MEMBERS 1. NUR IZZATI NADHIRAH BINTI TAJUL ARIFFIN

NAME OF LECTURER DR. FARIBA HOSSEIN ABADI

1) Stroke Description

Swimming stroke is a method of moving the arms and legs to push against the water and

pushing the swimmier to moving forward. Stroke also one of the repetitive movements of

the limbs and body used for movement in swimming or rowing. There are four swimming

strokes used in a competition which is the front crawl or freestyle stroke, breaststroke,

backstroke and butterfly stroke.

Front crawl is the fastest and most efficient of all swimming strokes because

there is always one arm pulling underwater, ideally positioned to deliver powerful

propulsion. The arm recovery above water minimizes drag and the continuous flutter

kicking contributes to steady propulsion. Because the front crawl is fast and efficient, it

dominates races where the choice of swimming style is free, such as freestyle races or

triathlon. For the same reasons, it often is the preferred swimming stroke of fitness

swimmers.

2) Write Practices points and key points.

The Freestyle is not actually a stroke but a category in swimming competition. The most

common and popular stroke in freestyle races is the front crawl as this style is the fastest.

For this reason, the term freestyle is often used as a synonym for front crawl. The front

crawl requires you to flutter kick your feet while reaching forward with alternating

strokes. These 4 steps to learn how to swim and improve front crawl swimming

technique.
 Step 1 is about body position. Keep body flat, facing down in the water with

your body keep in line with the water surface.

Step 2 is arm movement. Arm movement can be broken down to the simplest

form consists just two actions which is the pull and recovery. Pull mean, with palms

facing down, pull in-line with body with a slightly bent elbow in all the way to the side of

your upper thigh. Advanced swimmers can do a S-pull which maximizes the pulling

phase. Recovery is which hand close to your upper thigh, lift one arm out of the water

with a bent elbow. Reach forward over the water with a bent elbow and enter the water

with your fingertips. Both hands should alternate between these two movements and be

moving simultaneously.

Step 3 is related to breathing technique. Choosing a side to breathe will

depend on being right or left handed. Whilst hand is early in the recovery phase, turn

head sideways for a quick breath (one second). The trick is to time the roll of your head

with your arm movement.

Step 4 is leg action. With ankles relaxed and flexible, point toes behind and kick

up-and-down in a continuous motion from thighs. Kicking from the calves is not as

effective and a simple way to correct this is to make sure legs are straightened out while

kicking. For more details on this, refer to exercises that can do in the pool to improve

your swimming.

Coordination that need when doing front crawl is arms and legs should move

simultaneously in cycles. A breath should be taken on one side with each stroke of that

arm and breath is taken when that arm is back. Exhale as the same arms enter the water.
 Stretch arms as far as they can go to make a longer stroke. A large arm stroke is essential

to speed and efficient swimming. Keep a straight body to reduce drag and make

swimming easier and take short quick breaths instead of long one.

3) Analyze the stroke technique

The front crawl has three parts which is the flutter kick, the rotating arm stroke and

breathing. For this topic, we choose to discuss is about the arm stroke. This is because

most of the forward motion of the front crawl comes from the arm stroke, which has three

phases, was catch, power and recovery.

a) Catch

To begin the catch, slightly bend your right wrist and elbow as you move the

entire arm downward. Have your palm facing away from your body. Keep your

elbow, hand, and wrist fixed in the position. Your hand should be directly in line

with your shoulder.

The stroke for the catch phases

For the power phases, straighten your wrist and bend the elbow so your forearm is

about 45 degrees from the upper arm. Point your fingers down and inward. Push

hard against the water, and sweep your hand and forearm down and back under

your chest. Your hand will pass just a few inches from centerline of your body.

Your palm should be flat and should push backward against the water. As your

hand becomes level with your shoulder, begin the straighten out your arm as it

continues to move back and out to just beside your right hip. Your upper body

will roll, with your left hip turning down and toward the centerline. This turns

your right hip up toward the top of the water just as your right hand reaches the

end of the power phase.

Power phase
 c) Recovery

As your hand exits the water, the recovery phase begins. Start by lifting your

elbow up and forward. Keep your wrist and hand relaxed and trailing behind or

hanging below your elbow. As your hand passes the shoulder, it reaches up and

forward to enter the water again when it is at shoulder level. When your thumb is

even with your eye and your arm is straightened to about three-quarters of its

length, allow your fingertips to smoothly enter the water. Rotate your hand so that

your thumb enters first as your arm straightens under the water to its full length.

Recovery phase

4) Analyze and report the common mistakes/problem (or common mistake) about the

stroke technique.

• Head position

The mistake is a swimmer raises their head to breathe, the legs sink and make a big

drag. How to fix it is in almost all-round swimming pools, there is a black line in

every lane. While swimming freestyle, look at this black line. Rest your neck while

you do this. You will feel your hips rise to the surface of the water. This allows you to
tighten your core, which will cause tension in your back. Swimming while looking

down will also reduce endurance, helping you swim faster and smoother.

• Swimming flat

Swimming flat means your stomach is always pointing to the bottom of the pool.

When doing arm strokes, your body does not rotate to reduce the pressure on your

shoulders. This is very dangerous because it cannot provide comfort for the swimmer.

It is the one of the mistakes that a swimmers.

How to fix it rotate your shoulders. At arm strokes, extend your arms in front of

you until you feel your body rolling to your side. In this position, your armpits should

face down to the pool. Make sure that you keep your core running smoothly. Rotating

with a tight core will also be easier on your shoulders and back. While pulling your

hips, paddle aggressively through the water to help roll your body to the other side.

• Arm movement

The mistakes is pulling a bent arm is probably the most common problem in

swimming. This is where you reach the lower abdomen while pulling during arm

pain. This crossing is not suitable because you throw a lot of water. Hands often cross

the abdomen as swimmers breathe. This can be more difficult to change because you

cannot see your hands while breathing.

How to fix it, make sure you turn around. Otherwise, you will experience bending

from the beginning of the stroke. For example find a wall either on land or in the

pool. Place your back against the wall until both of your shoulders touch it. Next, get
 in front of you, straight from your shoulders. You will notice that your hand is not

right in front of your face. It is slightly beyond your sight. When not turning, you

have to cross in to get in front of your body.

5) Write a summary of the rules and regulations of swimming sport. Students need to

find information and knowledge from the World Swimming Association (FINA)

Website and the Malaysian Amateur Swimming Association (ASUM) website.

Freestyle with front crawl technique is the most common stroke that recreational

swimmers always perform. This technique can strengthen abs and glutes and also will

burn calories. Freestyle with front crawl is a fast paced race. There are some of rules and

regulations for freestyle swimming from World Swimming Association (FINA) and the

Malaysian Amateur Swimming Association (ASUM).

The first rules and regulation in freestyle with front crawl technique is start and

finish. The rules regarding starts and finishes for freestyle are easy to understand and

follow. The freestyle start in a forward start. You are allowed to keep your entire body

and you must drown your head to 15 meters after your start and for the each turn you do,

but after that distance, your head must break the surface of the water. The freestyle finish

when any part of your body touches the wall after you have completed the race. For most

competitive swimmers, this is a one-handed touch.

The second rules and regulation is turning. Freestyle turns are performed in open

or flip-style. Both types of turns are legal as long as part of your body touches the wall

before you return to the other side of the pool. The hand is important body part that must

touches the wall during an open turn. Your feet touch and push off from the wall in a flip
 turn. Touching the wall with any body part, such as the back, buttocks, shoulder or

elbow, is inefficient from a racing perspective, but this is not reasons for disqualification.

The last rules and regulation is disqualification. Competitive swimmers may

disqualify themselves from a freestyle race if they do not follow additional rules

regarding their activity in the pool. Swimmers who walk with their feet and touch the

bottom of the pool during a race, or forcefully pull on the lane lines are disqualified from

that race. Refraining from touching the wall during a turn also disqualifies you from a

freestyle race.

• Transaction Tasks: (30%)

• Students need to search about the knowledge and information and submit in a word

doc files.

Length of writing in 4-5 pages / double spacing /

* Submit in week 12 of lecture on the MyGuru site.

Transaction Tasks: (30%)

The submission deadline is 26 July 2020

Stay Safe and healthy,

Good Luck,

Dr. Fariba Hossein Abadi

June 2020
REFERENCES

Federation Internationale de Natation. (2017, September). Water is our power. Retrieved from

https://www.fina.org/sites/default/files/2017_2021_swimming_16032018.pdf

Federation Internationale de Natation. (2018-2020). Fina rules. Retrieved from

http://www.fina.org/content/fina-rules