The FINA Technical Swimming Congress, with 134 of FINA’s 200+ federations present to vote, met on Thursday morning in Barcelona to decide on some of the more potentially-monumental rules changes, and the biggest news they dropped was that there was no new news on the underwater dolphin kicks on breaststroke.
Specifically, FINA announced that “The rules on breaststroke concerning the start and the turn remain as in the present rulebook.”
This rejects several proposals to try to clean up the underwater dolphin kicks, including the implementation of underwater cameras (still under deliberation) and a proposal (that seemed to have a lot of backing within the highest levels of FINA) to allow unlimited dolphin kicks off of the start, and then revert to current rules off of other walls.
For now, FINA will continue to rely on the eyes of its officials, despite several very high-profile, and blatant, examples where they missed multiple kicks, including a large part of last year’s Olympic 100 meter final.
They are also for the first time recognizing Mixed Relays, which will be made up of two men and two women. FINA will begin recognizing World Records in those events, and expect to see them on the World Championship schedule as soon as 2015 (as the European Championships have already committed to include them).
Keep in mind that even leadoff splits from those relays, because of the advantages possible of women drafting off of men, will not be allowed for records or entry times; this came up in a race where Libby Trickett once broke a WR leading off a co-ed relay while drafting on Michael Phelps.
FINA will also begin recognizing World Records in the 200 free, 200 medley, and co-ed versions of each relay in short course meters. These 200 meter relay events have proven highly popular at Short Course European Championship meets. These events are expected to be included in the 2014 World Short Course Championships.
FINA has not yet released their full decisions, and there were a number of other fairly significant proposals on the table. Read a summary of the most notable here.
Masters World Record holder refined my breaststroke for years. Now b…. FINA want fly kicks everywhere. Mark my words, it will be all fly soon. There will be no breaststroke kick. What is it with these people? at 76, I would give it up on the day that rule came in. Tony Goodwin
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One assumption that seems to be prevalent here is that somehow more sprint events and relays will make swimming more popular. I don’t think there’s any evidence for this. Even if you included 25’s I don’t think the majority of TV audiences would care one bit. The public likes epic stories, such as those of Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz. They don’t care for silly stuff.
I’d disagree on the prevalence of the assumption.
In here it seems to be the opposite. Many commentators have speculated about the outcomes of new mixed relays but I haven’t noticed single comment that would champion the adding of relays on top of the current ones. Indeed, the same cannot be said for FINA whose title holders appear to think that having 1500 events would make swimming the most popular sport in the whole world.
Okay, a small correction to my previous comment; there are some comments for additional relays on top of the current ones.
I don’t know if adding more sprints and relays would make necessarily make swimming more popular on the world stage. At least, that’s not what I’m looking at the inclusion of mixed relays to do.
Rather, I’m looking at mixed relays opening up the field and letting more swimmers compete, and I think it’ll enhance the fun aspect of competing. I know, as a Masters swimmer, that I generally find our mixed relays to be more fun than our men’s relays, although our men’s relays are universally faster.
What’s next after mixed relays? Gay swimmer relays?
P.S. I would watch nude swimmer relays with great interest!
I would be all for some nude relays!
i’ll be sure to give you videos of the 60-65 400 Nude Mens medley relay when it comes about
Swimming has probably most relays among all sports already. Adding a total number of relays doesn’t sound a good idea. Swimming should not be harmed by making it more confusing to big audience.
I think we should make a distinction between the schedules of s/c and l/c World Championships as to relays. There are three possibilities to be considered. First, we can convert current relays into mixed versions or, second, we can replace the current ones with other forms of relays, in other words with 4*50m versions – or, third, we can do both.
I wouldn’t touch l/c Worlds before we’ve got enough experience and feedback from the overhaul of the s/c World Championships. There are only 4x50m… Read more »
I feel like FINA should add more open water events to the world champs instead of piling on pool events. After all, there was open water swimming way before pool swimming. Not to mention there are 40 pool events and 7 open water events.
I would propose considering the following new open water events (and pick 2 or 3 to add)
500 m “sprint” (M&F)
1k race (M&F)
4x1000m relay (coed)
4x2500m relay (M&F)
4x5000m relay (coed)
i think FINA should get open water events in the double digits and add actual relays
We can also look elsewhere to discover unforeseen types of competition that could be applied well to open water swimming
Team sprint: there could be teams that consist of two athletes (A and B) who pass the relay to each other three times (A, B, A, B, A, B). One loop could be something from 500 metres to 2500 metres.
In pursuit events a race is divided up into two parts, i.e. a sprint and pursuit. There are many ways to do this but for example first there could be individual time trials on the sprint course with a 30 second interval start. On the next day there is a pursuit in which swimmers’ starts are separated by their… Read more »
What else can you expect from FINA on adding mixed relays. It just follows where they added synchro diving, and then mixed and that idiotic high dive just to create new events. What about how they have added the X-Game type events in the winter and summer. Don’t give them credit for rationale thinking. Always wonder of the background of each individual that is a represent ice of their country. For instance the South Korean rep to FINA in the 80’s was a Vice President of the Hyundai corporation. With zero swimming background. They became the sponsor of swimming for the 88 games and took control. Remember the car company is just a division of the original corporation that was… Read more »
I applaud both decisions, although I think FINA should have manned up and instituted the underwater video rule at the major meets.
As a Masters swimmer, I think mixed relays are awesome, and look forward to seeing them at Worlds and maybe even the Olympics at some point.
On a side note, wouldn’t it be more fair to say that just leadoff splits for women on the mixed relays would not be allowed, if the leadoff legs in the heat are mixed? I get the drafting argument, but if it’s all men swimming the leadoff leg, or all women, then that’s no different than when it’s a men’s or women’s relay.
To clarify, it would make sense to me if the leadoff splits were disallowed only if the leadoff legs in that heat were mixed. That is, if in a 400 mixed medley relay, for example, all the backstrokers were male, then the splits would be valid. Likewise if all the backstrokers were female.
I would agree that it should only be female splits in a mixed leadoff leg which are ineligible for records.
I don’t see why a Mags or Grevers should miss out on an individual world record under such circumstances when they would be approx 6 seconds ahead of the females on the same leg.
Then again, what happens if a female breaks the WR on the leadoff leg from lane 6 when the nearest male competitor is in lane 1? Perhaps the rule should only apply if a male swimmer was in the next lane, as with Lenton’s 52.99 while drafting on Phelps.
Tim – it sounds like they’re still hashing out details on that plan. Vote on video review could be coming.
Yes, you could argue that on leadoff splits, the problem would be administering it at meets outside of the World Championships….could add a lot of extra paperwork.