Swimming Race Tactics Development

In this article, we’ll provide tips, hacks and drills to help develop competitive swimming race tactics.

The importance of developing swimming race tactics

Many competitive swimming races are decided by hundredths of a second. The race tactics a swimmer employs can be the difference between a gold and a silver medal.

Many young and less experienced competitive swimmers enter their first competition without any idea of how they are going to race.

It’s important that together, the coach and the swimmer develop effective swimming race tactics, as it’s an important means for swimmers to achieve their swimming goals.

Swimming race tactics development

Influencing factors

There are many ways to swim a race, and there are many factors that can influence a swimmer’s race tactics. For example.

Is the swimmer competing to achieve a qualifying time or a personal best, or are they in a championship competing for a medal?

What event is the swimmer competing in and over what distance?

Formulating race tactics for a 50m breaststroke sprint is a lot different to formulating race tactics for a long-distance 1500m freestyle swim.

How experienced is the swimmer?

Are they relatively inexperienced, meaning that they should keep their race tactics simple?
Or are they a senior swimmer who can adapt to a series of different tactics on the day of competition?

Race pacing development

Pacing a race correctly can be extremely difficult to achieve.

With the nerves, the excitement and the added adrenaline that can accompany the start of a race, it can be very easy to swim too quickly at the beginning of a race.
This can often lead to burn out, often resulting in a slower back end of the race, with the outcome of the swimmers performing a much slower race than they had originally hoped.
At whatever distance and whatever stroke, each event requires the swimmer to swim at their optimum pace, even 50m events.

Developing your race pacing

Developing your race pacing often requires consistent practice over a number of training sessions.

The swimmer should perform race pacing sets at the tempo that they wish to compete. manner
For example, many middle distance (400m – 800m) freestyle swimmers work out their race pacing over 100m.
They could perform a set of say 4 to 8 x 100m with a 30 second rest interval.
The swimmer should then try to swim at a consistent tempo.
The swimmer or coach should record their time for each rep.
At the end of the set the coach should give the swimmer feedback, regarding the times achieved, also suggest any technical or pace adjustments that may be needed.
One a consistent race pace has been established; the next stage is for the swimmer to practice holding that pace over the full race distance.

This set can be adapted for all distances and strokes

For example, for 50m sprinters 4 x 25m with a 60-second rest interval.
100m events 4 x 50m with a 60-second rest interval.
200m events 4 x 100m with a 45-second rest interval.
1500m+ events 8 x 200m with a 30-second rest interval

Race pacing methods

There are four common methods of pacing a race.

Sprints: for events of 50m or less
Even paced swims: For events of 100m or more
Frontend swims: For events of 100m or more
Backend swims: For events of 100m or more

Each requires the coach and the swimmer to develop the swimmers conditioning and a set of key swimming skills, in order to employ their race tactics effectively.

Swimmers need to be quick and powerful off the starting block/platform.
An effective underwater dolphin kick should be employed in the transition from the start into the swim.
The entire race is performed at high speed, with a high stroke rate.
Swimmers should focus on their swimming technique, ensuring they catch the water correctly.
Some swimmers use stroke count to ensure they are swimming to their optimum
They also need to focus on minimising their breathing.
When completing the race, swimmers need to ensure they finish on a full stroke, with no or very minimal glide into the wall. This is especially important on backstroke.

Related articles on stroke count and stroke rate

We have produced related articles, on both how to use stroke count and stroke rate and stroke count and stroke rate drills. Which you can view by clicking these links: How to use stroke count and stroke rate | stroke count and stroke rate drills.

Even pace swims are where the swimmer, swims each length/lap of their race at the same time.
To establish and develop even split swimming, swimmers should use an aqua pacer/tempo trainer*.
Some swimmers use stroke count to ensure they are swimming to their optimum
Swimmers should focus on maintaining a strong steady leg kick
Ensure swimmers have a developed underwater dolphin kick, for their starts and turns.
Swimming an even raced swim can be extremely useful for a triathlete, who should swim and quickly and as economically as possible, in order to save strength and energy for the bike and running disciplines.

*An aqua pacer/tempo trainer is a small electronic disc which is either attached to the strap of the swimmer’s goggles by a clip or placed under their swim hat/cap.

This device emits a series of ‘bleeps’ which is the signal for the swimmer to start their ‘catch’ (the placing of their hand in the water at the start of the pull phase of each stroke).
The Aqua Pacer/Tempo Trainer can be time adjusted to assist the correct pacing or stroke rate of a set.

Related article on the finis tempo trainer pro: users guide

We have produced a related article on the finis tempo trainer pro: users guide. Which you can view by clicking this link: the finis tempo trainer pro: users guide.

Coach Arthur says: “I personally use the FINIS Tempo Trainer Pro. I have found this device especially useful over the years, for pacing swimmers over all distances, especially middle and longer distances from 400m to 1500m”.

We have included an Amazon affiliate link to the FINIS Tempo Trainer Pro. If you buy this via this link, you won’t pay a penny more, but we’ll receive a small commission, which helps keep us in the water. Many thanks. FINIS Tempo Trainer Pro

Frontend swims are where a swimmer starts quickly and tries to maintain a fast pace for as long as possible.
The swimmer needs to ensure that they don’t start off too quickly, so they don’t ‘die’ on the final lap/length.
Swimmers need to maintain a high stroke rate throughout the race.
Swimmers should focus on their swimming technique, ensuring they catch the water correctly.
Outside Smoker: Sometimes when a swimmer is drawn in an outside lane, they are often unsighted by the swimmers in the middle lanes. This is when using a front-end swim can be an extremely effective racing tactic. It may catch the swimmer’s opponents unawares and give them an unassailable lead.

Backend swims are where a swimmer starts at a fast but steady pace and build speed towards the end of the race.
The swimmer needs to ensure that they don’t start off at a too leisurely pace and let the other swimmers get away from them.
Swimmers need to maintain a high stroke rate throughout the race.
Swimmers should focus on their swimming technique, ensuring they catch the water correctly.
Backend swims may not be suitable for inexperienced swimmers, especially when swimming butterfly.

Other swimming race tactics

Taking the lead

Taking an early lead in a race can build a swimmer’s confidence and may even demoralise their opponents.

Swimmers taking the lead can also have a distinct advantage, especially as a way of avoiding the turbulence caused by the other swimmers.
Swimming in the turbulence caused by the other swimmers increases the energy a swimmer must expend to combat the drag caused by their wake.
However, swimmers should only take an early lead, when they can do so without expending too much energy.

Breaking away in the middle of a race

Breaking away in the middle of a race can be an effective swimming race tactic.

It may catch the swimmer’s opponents unawares and give them an unassailable lead.
Swimmers should ensure that the break is decisive.
However, swimmers should also ensure that they don’t expend too much energy, which could result in them dying towards the end of the race.

On and off swimming

On and off race tactics are usually employed during middle or long-distance freestyle races.

Some swimmers increase their pace on the second 25m or 50m of each 50m or 100m, throughout the race.
During the ‘off’ phases of the race, the swimmer should focus on maintaining a steady race pace.
Many swimmers increase the speed of their swim, by changing the speed and intensity of their leg kick, from a 2-beat to a 6-beat kick.

Drafting

Drafting is a swimming technique, where a swimmer aligns themselves close to a lead swimmer in order to reduce the overall effects of drag, by swimming in their slipstream.

Swimmers who draft can significantly reduce the energy required whilst swimming, by between 20% and 30%.
In a pool, a swimmer can draught on the hip, by swimming close to the lane rope/line that separates them from another swimmer.

Race tactics considerations for different distances

The final consideration for developing race tactics is the distance of the event. For example,

100m events

Swimmers should treat 100m swims as sprints.

A high stroke rate should be maintained throughout the race.

200m events

Swimmers should treat 200m swims as speed endurance sets.

A high stroke rate should be maintained throughout the race.
There should be no relaxation or reduction of speed during the third 50m of the race.

400m events

This is a middle-distance event.

Swimmers need to ensure that they apply themselves throughout the race.
Less experienced swimmers may find it easier to start off swimming these events as even pace swims

800m + 1500m events

These are long-distance events.

Swimmers need to ensure that they apply themselves throughout the race.
Less experienced swimmers may find it easier to start off swimming these events as even pace swims

Swimming race tactics training

Ian Thorpe (Australia) Freestyle

Multi Olympic & World Champion & Former World Record Holder

Coaches and swimmers should regularly practice different racing pacing methods, to gradually develop a broad range of race tactics.
These race tactics should be adaptable, so as a swimmer develops, their race tactics can involve and develop with them.
Coaches need to ensure that they record all the relevant time and split information so that this information can be used to develop the appropriate race tactics for each swimmer.
Developing a race strategy helps develop a swimmer’s confidence, that they can swim their race the way they trained for it.

Swimming race tactics drills

Race pace development set

Introduction: This is a great race tactics development set for introducing the swimmers to even-paced, frontend and backend swims.

How to perform this set:

This set is performed as 6 x 300m broken swims.
As a 200m at race pace, with a 15-second rest interval
This is followed by a 100m recovery swim, with a one-minute rest interval.

Six reps as 1 & 2: Even paced swims, 3 & 4: Frontend swims and 5 & 6: Backend swims

Coaches should ensure that all times and length/lap splits are recorded.

Backend swim development set

Introduction: An introductory backend swims race pace/tactics drill.

How to perform this drill: Backend swims: This progression has the objective to get the swimmers to swim progressively faster over four lengths of the pool (100m).

Starting at a steady pace for the first length (25m), at 70% of maximum speed
The second length needs to be swum faster than the first length, at 75% of maximum speed
The third length needs to be quicker than the second length, at 80% of maximum speed
The last length needs to be quickest of all, at maximum speed
Each length’s splits for this drill needs to be timed, recorded and if necessary adjusted.
The coach needs to give feedback to the swimmer and future race pace target timings adjusted accordingly.
Please note: the objective of this drill is controlled speed, with great technique.
Ensure the swimmers focus on a fast and smooth stroke.

Frontend swim development set

Introduction: An introductory frontend swims race pace/tactics drill.

How to perform this drill: Frontend swims: The swimmer goes out fast and tries to hold onto a fast pace, without too much drop off in time over each length.

It’s far more difficult to judge the correct pacing of frontend swims.
Each length’s splits for this drill needs to be timed, recorded and future race pace target timings adjusted accordingly.
The coach needs to give feedback to the swimmer and future race pace target timings adjusted accordingly.
Please note: the objective of this drill is controlled speed, with great technique.
Ensure the swimmers focus on a fast and smooth stroke.

Takeaway