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The Tokyo 2021 Olympics will bring back the greatest sporting spectacle in the world. Hosted every 4 years, it is a platform for the best sportspeople to demonstrate their abilities. Swimming constitutes the second largest share of events at the Games, after Athletics.
Olympic swimming is considered the pinnacle of the sport. For a professional swimmer, winning at the Olympics is the biggest achievement. The Olympic games have also shaped the way that the sport has grown. It has helped fine-tune the sport into what it is, adding and subtracting events and strokes on the basis of experiences and discoveries in the past.
The "Front Crawl," now known as the "freestyle," was one of the first strokes to be invented and the first version of the Olympics in 1896 only had this stroke swum across 4 events. These included the 100m, 500m, 1200m freestyle and the 100m freestyle for sailors.
Michael Phelps, with his truly unassailable 28 Olympic medals, is the most decorated Olympian swimmer of all time.
The events range across a multitude of strokes of different lengths, some requiring sprinting abilities, others testing the swimmer’s endurance, and some techniques across different strokes.
With the Tokyo 2021 Olympics right around the corner, there are many events in the pool to look forward to, so here is the list:
Freestyle at Tokyo 2021
The front crawl, or freestyle as it is popularly known, is often regarded as the fastest stroke and is also the most practiced in the Olympics. There is a long list of distances that this event is swum at, they range from 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m. The Olympics even has a 10km open water event that uses this stroke, albeit without stroke-specific regulations.
Butterfly at Tokyo 2021
Perhaps the newest and most difficult stroke of all, the butterfly stroke is a combination of synchronized pulling with both arms as well as dolphin kicks. This event requires exceptional energy and is hence restricted to shorter distance events such as the 100m and 200m.
Backstroke at Tokyo 2021
The back crawl or the backstroke is the only formally recognized backward movement in the water. It is an extremely old stroke and was first practiced in 1904 as a 100m event. However, it now has a 200m event as well.
Breaststroke at Tokyo 2021
Perhaps one of the original forms of swimming, the breaststroke was formally enrolled in the Olympic games for the first time in 1908 as a 200m event. However, its 100m counterpart was initiated in 1968.
Individual Medley at Tokyo 2021
The Individual Medley is one of the greatest tests for an individual swimmer in competitive swimming. In this event, participants are expected to swim all the four strokes across a designated distance of either 200m or 400m. The order in which the swimmers go starts with the backstroke, onwards to the breaststroke, then the butterfly, and finally the freestyle.
Freestyle Relay at Tokyo 2021
This event has witnessed some of the most closely fought team battles ever, with the US and French men’s teams producing an epic rivalry. The event is swum across two distances, namely the 4x100m and 4x200m.
Medley Relay at Tokyo 2021
The medley relay is a unique event, as it is a culmination of swimmers representing their national teams by contributing with their best strokes in order to ascertain victory.
The butterfly stroke constitutes the first leg of the race, followed by the backstroke, then the breaststroke, and finally the freestyle. Each swimmer does 100m of their individual leg in the race, and this event is therefore known as the 4x100m medley relay.
Mixed Medley Relay at Tokyo 2021
This is the most recent addition to the roster of events at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics. It provides a fresh and unique approach at harmonizing the talents of both the women’s and men’s teams.
The team needs to consist of both men and women, i.e. two men and two women. They can swim any leg of the race based on their strategic advantages. Similar to the medley relay, this event also calls for the use of all four strokes
Also Read: Tokyo Olympics: Know Your Swimming Events, Dates, and Fixtures
