The most important swimming competitions in the world

 Each sports discipline seeks, through its most important competitions, to crown the best exponents. In the case of swimming, there are some regional and world competitions that everyone aspires to reach. Below, we offer an overview of the main events of this sport.

In the field of swimming, there are two entities that regulate the activity and are responsible for organizing international competitions with lifeguard recertification near me. We are talking about the FINA (International Swimming Federation) and the IOC ( International Olympic Committee ).

Types of swimming competitions

As we already know, swimming is a discipline made up of four styles: crawl or freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, and breaststroke. In addition, the different tests can be carried out in pools of 25 or 50 meters; The difference between these two modalities lies in the number of turns that swimmers must make to complete the distances.

50, 100, or 200 meters:  These distances apply to races in all four strokes.

400-meter freestyle:  the freestyle crawl is the only one in which you compete with a distance of 400 meters.

800 or 1500 meters freestyle: on the other hand, the front crawl style also allows endurance tests, whose duration is much longer than those previously mentioned. The 800-meter distance is for the women, while the men compete in the 1,500-meter distance.

Individual medley: Equal distances swim in all four strokes. It can be 200 m or 400 m in total.

Medley: it is a four-person team test, in which each one develops a different style in 100 meters. The order is as follows: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and front crawl. Free relay tests of 4 x 100 meters or 4 x 200 meters can also be carried out.

The most important competitions in swimming

Next, we will list the most prestigious competitions in the field of this sport:

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games bring together the best athletes from around the world every four years. It is an event that has its roots in Ancient Greece, and whose realization was resumed in modernity from the year 1896.

Swimming is, along with athletics, the star sport of this sporting event. It is because it is one of the disciplines that have always existed; in fact, men demonstrated their strength through water races since ancient times.

In the JJ.OO., all the swimming tests that we mentioned previously are carried out. In total, there are 17 events for men and another 17 for women, who have competed since the 1912 edition.

The biggest winner to date is the American Michael Phelps, who won 23 gold medals. He is followed by another American, Mark Spitz, with 'just' 9 medals. As for the women's branch, the best of all time is the American Jenny Thompson, with 8 golds.

Swimming World Cup

Since 1973, FINA has organized the World Swimming Championships, which hosts the greatest exponents of this sport throughout the planet. Unlike the Olympic Games, these events are held every two years; Precisely, the odd years are carried out.

Although swimming is also the most attractive activity here, other forms of sports in the pool are also included, such as diving competitions, water polo, synchronized swimming, and open water events.

Short Course Swimming World Championships

It could be described as a 'reduced' edition of the competition mentioned above. The Short Course Swimming World Cup is held every two years in even years and includes only the modalities that are disputed in a 25-meter pool.

Most important competitions at the regional level

Although those mentioned above are the most important competitions in the world of swimming, each continent also organizes its own events. In this way, a greater number of athletes are allowed to participate, while internal competition is promoted to prepare for world-class events.

Among the most outstanding regional competitions, we can list the following:

European Swimming Championship: organized by the European Swimming League, it takes place every two years in even years. It covers all swimming competitions and takes place in a 50-meter pool. Germany and Russia are the most successful countries in history.

European Short Course Swimming Championship:  the difference is the same as the one that occurs at the world level between both events. This continental contest is held in December of odd years.

Pan American Games: Organized by the Pan American Sports Organization every four years. All the countries of America are included and, like the Olympic Games, it covers a large number of sports.

Order Games bring together the best South American athletes, although some from Central America and the Caribbean also usually participate. They are held every four years.

In addition, it is necessary to highlight that in North America there are numerous swimming tests organized by the American Federation of Aquatic Sports and also recognized by the American Swimming Union.

In short, every year the best swimmers meet at the corresponding event with the aim of adding medals and setting new records. The competition is continuous, so the chances of seeing the best in action come, luckily, very frequently.