Finswimming
Encyclopedia
Finswimming is the progression of a swimmer using monofins or normal swimfin
s (called bifins or stereofins within the sport) either on the water surface or underwater
, using only muscle
strength. It is a discipline of underwater sports
. The competition distances are same as for swimming (as described below). Continental and World Championships are organized by CMAS
.
s and other equipment. The equipment used is dictated by the disciplines that the competitor is racing. These disciplines reflect finswimming's origins and development from SCUBA
and snorkelling.
There are four disciplines in international finswimming (in swimming pools):
All open water events are raced on the surface and are held over 1,500, 3,000, 6,000 and 25,000 metres. Open water immersion is known as underwater orienteering.
In many countries there are races over other distances (especially in open water finswimming; often dictated by a historical racing course - across a bay, for example). In the United States of America there are events in 25 yard pools, including:
In many countries, additional distances are raced in "short course" programmes (25 metre (length) swimming pools) or are added to their "long course" (50 metre (length) swimming pool) programmes; these often include:
In many countries that historically used imperial units, there are many, often older pools that were built to match fractions of a mile (usually 27.5, 36 2/3 or 55 yards). In these pools, there are often some unusual distance events, such as 55 or 73 1/3 yards surface. This can cause some complications in converting times (110 yards = 100.584 metres).
Historically, the distance of 1,850 metres (approximately an imperial unit
nautical mile) was raced at international events (an official World Record still stands). Other distances were also raced, including:
. Many finswimmers use heavily modified regulator
s, often stripping away any unnecessary parts. In both apnea and immersion races, turn and technique judges often disqualify competitors if their faces can be seen, as this indicates that they might be breathing above the surface.
s. There were competitions held in France
in the early 1920s, Italy
in the 1930s and 1940s and in the United Kingdom
in the 1950s.
World and Continental Championships are organised under CMAS
rules and regulations. The European Championships have run since 1967 (held in Italy
). World Championships have been held since 1976 (held in Germany
). The World Championships are held every two years (on every odd year) and Continental Championships held in the intervening years. There have been twenty one European Championships. The Asian Finswimming Championships have been held 10 times, having started in 1989, the last being held in 2007 (in Hong Kong
). There have been three Pan-American Championships, starting in 1993, with the last being held in 2001 (in Cali, Colombia). There have also been five "Arab Zone" Championships, the last was held in 2003 (in Beirut, Lebanon). Recently, CMAS
has amalgamated all of the World Championships for the sports that it governs into one event, the World Underwater Games. The First World Underwater Games were held in 2007 in Bari, Italy. Most of the results for these Championships can be found on the CMAS
website.
The sport is also one of those included in the World Games
, South East Asia Games and in several multi-sport and military international events. Since 1988 (San Francisco, California
, USA), the sport had been included in the World Corporate Games but has not been included since the 1992 Games in London
, United Kingdom. Sadly, little is available on the Games, other than a short "history list" on the Australian Corporate Games website and a brief mention on the Underwater Society of America website.
, China
, France
, Greece
, Germany
and Italy
are the main players. However, it can be found in over one hundred countries around the world. Finswimming is found in many Commonwealth countries (see Commonwealth of Nations
) including the United Kingdom
, Australia
, New Zealand
, Canada
and Singapore
(see Commonwealth Finswimming Records
).
Most countries hold National Championships, many of which are open to international competitors (including the Netherlands
, Germany
and Belgium
).
In the United Kingdom
there are around ten finswimming clubs, mostly in Kent
. There is an annual National Short Course (25 m pool) Finswimming Championships in the United Kingdom
, which are traditionally held at the Edenbridge Leisure Centre, Edenbridge, Kent
in November. , the annual National Long Course (50 m pool) Finswimming Championships have been held; the first being held in Aldershot
, Hampshire
.
In the United States
it is very small but gaining competitors. The major areas of finswimming in the United States include Texas
(Houston
, including the suburbs of Pasadena
and Deer Park
), which has the largest concentration of finswimmers in the USA http://texfinswim.blogspot.com/, California
(around San Francisco
, which is the location of the national headquarters for USA Fin Swimming), Rhode Island
(around Providence
), and scattered individuals in Florida
. The United States has competed at the World Championships sporadically since the early 1980s, achieving very limited success on the international scene. A few competitions are held in the United States, with the last US National Championships being held in California in 1998. Texas hosts three to four meets a year, with participation consisting of Texas finswimmers and those from other countries who live in the southeast Texas area and still train and compete in the sport. They have hosted the majority of the finswimming competitions in the USA for the past 6–8 years. Texas hosts the Texas Open Finswimming Invitational, the Gulf Coast International Finswimming Invitational, along with the Texas State Finswimming Championships every year. All of these events are hosted and organized by the Texas Finswimming Association. In addition they also host 2-3 high school finswimming meets a year. The World Scholar-Athlete Games and the United States Scholar-Athlete Games at the University of Rhode Island have included finswimming competition as a part of their Games program since 1999. The sport is growing in the United States with scattered pockets around the country popping up. However Texas leads the country in the number of finswimmers and competitions. Most finswimming training outside of Texas and California consists of cross training for swimming.
), is 20.91 seconds (by Cesar CIELO FILHO of Brazil
). In finswimming it is 14.10 seconds (for 50 m Apnea by Pavel Kabanov of Russia
) (see World finswimming records). This is a 66 % increase in speed over conventional swimming
.
One of the great appeals of finswimming is that finswimmers do not need to be good swimmers. Indeed, there is some evidence that top flight swimmers may make poorer finswimmers than well trained finswimmers (see below).
. In addition, finswimmers tend to do far more dry-side work, including a huge amount of core stability
(as core strength), plyometrics
and weight training
. Again, this is carried out on a specific basis.
The sport will continue to develop and move forward. Some people consider that this will only happen if more swimmers become involved and knowledgeable about the benefits of training with monofins. However, this assumption has become controversial; most fin based sports have established that athletes that develop through the sport are more adept at them. The debate has been mostly within the finswimming community and still-water lifesaving
, being a popular discussion point at meets. The "swimming side" appears to be strongest in countries were the sport is poorly represented. It has been recorded that swimmers tend to approach the sport with preconceptions on technique, which can limit their success.
Swimfin
Swimfins, swim fins, fins or flippers are worn on the foot or leg and made from finlike rubber or plastic, to aid movement through the water in water sports activities such as swimming, bodyboarding, bodysurfing, kneeboarding, riverboarding, and various types of underwater diving.Scuba divers use...
s (called bifins or stereofins within the sport) either on the water surface or underwater
Underwater
Underwater is a term describing the realm below the surface of water where the water exists in a natural feature such as an ocean, sea, lake, pond, or river. Three quarters of the planet Earth is covered by water...
, using only muscle
Muscle
Muscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...
strength. It is a discipline of underwater sports
Underwater sports
Underwater sports include a range of sports, mostly involving the use of swimfins and often including some element of breath-hold, snorkelling or scuba...
. The competition distances are same as for swimming (as described below). Continental and World Championships are organized by CMAS
CMAS
CMAS may stand for:* Commercial Mobile Alert System, a system for distributing emergency alerts to mobile devices* Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques, the international umbrella organization for underwater sports, both competitive and recreational * CMAS* SCUBA Diver, a diving...
.
Disciplines and Distances
Finswimming differs from swimming in the use of swimfinSwimfin
Swimfins, swim fins, fins or flippers are worn on the foot or leg and made from finlike rubber or plastic, to aid movement through the water in water sports activities such as swimming, bodyboarding, bodysurfing, kneeboarding, riverboarding, and various types of underwater diving.Scuba divers use...
s and other equipment. The equipment used is dictated by the disciplines that the competitor is racing. These disciplines reflect finswimming's origins and development from SCUBA
Scuba
Scuba is an acronym for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus. It may also refer to:* Scuba diving, the use of a self-contained breathing set to stay underwater for periods of time* Scuba set, the equipment used to do scuba diving...
and snorkelling.
There are four disciplines in international finswimming (in swimming pools):
- Surface: 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1500, 4 x 100 relay and 4 x 200 relay (metres)
- Surface bifins (stereofins): 50, 100 and 200 (metres)
- Apnea: 50 (metres)
- Immersion: 100, 400, 800 (metres)
All open water events are raced on the surface and are held over 1,500, 3,000, 6,000 and 25,000 metres. Open water immersion is known as underwater orienteering.
In many countries there are races over other distances (especially in open water finswimming; often dictated by a historical racing course - across a bay, for example). In the United States of America there are events in 25 yard pools, including:
- Surface: 25, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 1650; 4 x 50, 4 x 100, and 4 x 200 relays (yards)
- Apnea: 25, 50; 200 relay (yards)
- Immersion: 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000 (yards)
In many countries, additional distances are raced in "short course" programmes (25 metre (length) swimming pools) or are added to their "long course" (50 metre (length) swimming pool) programmes; these often include:
- Surface: 25; 4 x 50 relay (metres)
- Apnea: 25; 4 x 50 relay (metres)
In many countries that historically used imperial units, there are many, often older pools that were built to match fractions of a mile (usually 27.5, 36 2/3 or 55 yards). In these pools, there are often some unusual distance events, such as 55 or 73 1/3 yards surface. This can cause some complications in converting times (110 yards = 100.584 metres).
Historically, the distance of 1,850 metres (approximately an imperial unit
Imperial unit
The system of imperial units or the imperial system is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act of 1824, which was later refined and reduced. The system came into official use across the British Empire...
nautical mile) was raced at international events (an official World Record still stands). Other distances were also raced, including:
- Immersion: 1,000 (metres)
- Apnea: 40 (metres)
Descriptions of disciplines
In surface races, competitors have to surface before the 15 m after the start and any turns. Competitors use a centre-mounted snorkel to breathe. Apnea races take place under or at the surface with no breathing allowed, even at a turn (should one be necessary). The immersion discipline involves the use of a scuba tank and a simplified regulatorDiving regulator
A diving regulator is a pressure regulator used in scuba or surface supplied diving equipment that reduces pressurized breathing gas to ambient pressure and delivers it to the diver. The gas may be air or one of a variety of specially blended breathing gases...
. Many finswimmers use heavily modified regulator
Diving regulator
A diving regulator is a pressure regulator used in scuba or surface supplied diving equipment that reduces pressurized breathing gas to ambient pressure and delivers it to the diver. The gas may be air or one of a variety of specially blended breathing gases...
s, often stripping away any unnecessary parts. In both apnea and immersion races, turn and technique judges often disqualify competitors if their faces can be seen, as this indicates that they might be breathing above the surface.
History
There has been a lot written about the first finswimming championships and the origins of swimfinSwimfin
Swimfins, swim fins, fins or flippers are worn on the foot or leg and made from finlike rubber or plastic, to aid movement through the water in water sports activities such as swimming, bodyboarding, bodysurfing, kneeboarding, riverboarding, and various types of underwater diving.Scuba divers use...
s. There were competitions held in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the early 1920s, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in the 1930s and 1940s and in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the 1950s.
World and Continental Championships are organised under CMAS
CMAS
CMAS may stand for:* Commercial Mobile Alert System, a system for distributing emergency alerts to mobile devices* Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques, the international umbrella organization for underwater sports, both competitive and recreational * CMAS* SCUBA Diver, a diving...
rules and regulations. The European Championships have run since 1967 (held in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
). World Championships have been held since 1976 (held in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
). The World Championships are held every two years (on every odd year) and Continental Championships held in the intervening years. There have been twenty one European Championships. The Asian Finswimming Championships have been held 10 times, having started in 1989, the last being held in 2007 (in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
). There have been three Pan-American Championships, starting in 1993, with the last being held in 2001 (in Cali, Colombia). There have also been five "Arab Zone" Championships, the last was held in 2003 (in Beirut, Lebanon). Recently, CMAS
CMAS
CMAS may stand for:* Commercial Mobile Alert System, a system for distributing emergency alerts to mobile devices* Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques, the international umbrella organization for underwater sports, both competitive and recreational * CMAS* SCUBA Diver, a diving...
has amalgamated all of the World Championships for the sports that it governs into one event, the World Underwater Games. The First World Underwater Games were held in 2007 in Bari, Italy. Most of the results for these Championships can be found on the CMAS
CMAS
CMAS may stand for:* Commercial Mobile Alert System, a system for distributing emergency alerts to mobile devices* Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques, the international umbrella organization for underwater sports, both competitive and recreational * CMAS* SCUBA Diver, a diving...
website.
The sport is also one of those included in the World Games
World Games
The World Games, first held in 1981, are an international multi-sport event, meant for sports, or disciplines or events within a sport, that are not contested in the Olympic Games...
, South East Asia Games and in several multi-sport and military international events. Since 1988 (San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, USA), the sport had been included in the World Corporate Games but has not been included since the 1992 Games in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, United Kingdom. Sadly, little is available on the Games, other than a short "history list" on the Australian Corporate Games website and a brief mention on the Underwater Society of America website.
Distribution
It is a fairly widespread sport around the world; RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
are the main players. However, it can be found in over one hundred countries around the world. Finswimming is found in many Commonwealth countries (see Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
) including the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
(see Commonwealth Finswimming Records
Commonwealth finswimming records
Below is the list of current Commonwealth Finswimming Records. The records are ratified by the Commonwealth Finswimming Committee, which is made up of the National Finswimming Governing Bodies of Commonwealth of Nations. The First Commonwealth Championships were held in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia...
).
Most countries hold National Championships, many of which are open to international competitors (including the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
).
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
there are around ten finswimming clubs, mostly in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. There is an annual National Short Course (25 m pool) Finswimming Championships in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, which are traditionally held at the Edenbridge Leisure Centre, Edenbridge, Kent
Edenbridge, Kent
Edenbridge is a town and civil parish in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The town's name derives from Old English language "Eadhelmsbrigge" . It is located on the Kent/Surrey border on the upper floodplain of the River Medway and gives its name to the latter's tributary, the River Eden...
in November. , the annual National Long Course (50 m pool) Finswimming Championships have been held; the first being held in Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
it is very small but gaining competitors. The major areas of finswimming in the United States include Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, including the suburbs of Pasadena
Pasadena, Texas
Pasadena is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. It is the second-largest city in Harris County, 17th-largest in Texas, and 162nd largest in the United States. The area was founded in 1893 by John H. Burnett of Galveston....
and Deer Park
Deer Park, Texas
Deer Park is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. The city is located in Harris County and is situated in Southeast Texas. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Deer Park was 32,010....
), which has the largest concentration of finswimmers in the USA http://texfinswim.blogspot.com/, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
(around San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, which is the location of the national headquarters for USA Fin Swimming), Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
(around Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
), and scattered individuals in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. The United States has competed at the World Championships sporadically since the early 1980s, achieving very limited success on the international scene. A few competitions are held in the United States, with the last US National Championships being held in California in 1998. Texas hosts three to four meets a year, with participation consisting of Texas finswimmers and those from other countries who live in the southeast Texas area and still train and compete in the sport. They have hosted the majority of the finswimming competitions in the USA for the past 6–8 years. Texas hosts the Texas Open Finswimming Invitational, the Gulf Coast International Finswimming Invitational, along with the Texas State Finswimming Championships every year. All of these events are hosted and organized by the Texas Finswimming Association. In addition they also host 2-3 high school finswimming meets a year. The World Scholar-Athlete Games and the United States Scholar-Athlete Games at the University of Rhode Island have included finswimming competition as a part of their Games program since 1999. The sport is growing in the United States with scattered pockets around the country popping up. However Texas leads the country in the number of finswimmers and competitions. Most finswimming training outside of Texas and California consists of cross training for swimming.
Appeal
The main appeal of finswimming is the speed that a competitor can reach. The World record for the 50 m freestyle, Long Course (see World records in swimmingWorld records in swimming
The world records in swimming are ratified by the international governing body of swimming FINA. Records can be set in long course or short course swimming pools...
), is 20.91 seconds (by Cesar CIELO FILHO of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
). In finswimming it is 14.10 seconds (for 50 m Apnea by Pavel Kabanov of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
) (see World finswimming records). This is a 66 % increase in speed over conventional swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
.
One of the great appeals of finswimming is that finswimmers do not need to be good swimmers. Indeed, there is some evidence that top flight swimmers may make poorer finswimmers than well trained finswimmers (see below).
Training
Unlike most swimming training programmes, finswimming training tends to be far more specific and more like systems used for track running in athleticsAthletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...
. In addition, finswimmers tend to do far more dry-side work, including a huge amount of core stability
Core stability
Core stability relates to the bodily region bounded by the abdominal wall, the pelvis, the lower back and the diaphragm and its ability to stabilise the body during movement. The main muscles involved include the transversus abdominus, the internal and external obliques, the quadratus lumborum and...
(as core strength), plyometrics
Plyometrics
Plyometrics is a type of exercise training designed to produce fast, powerful movements, and improve the functions of the nervous system, generally for the purpose of improving performance in sports. Plyometric exercises may also be referred to as explosive exercises...
and weight training
Weight training
Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscle through concentric or eccentric contraction...
. Again, this is carried out on a specific basis.
The sport will continue to develop and move forward. Some people consider that this will only happen if more swimmers become involved and knowledgeable about the benefits of training with monofins. However, this assumption has become controversial; most fin based sports have established that athletes that develop through the sport are more adept at them. The debate has been mostly within the finswimming community and still-water lifesaving
Lifesaving
Lifesaving is the act involving rescue, resuscitation and first aid. It often refers to water safety and aquatic rescue however it could include ice rescue, flood and river rescue, swimming pool rescue and other emergency medical services. Lifesaving also refers to sport where lifesavers compete...
, being a popular discussion point at meets. The "swimming side" appears to be strongest in countries were the sport is poorly represented. It has been recorded that swimmers tend to approach the sport with preconceptions on technique, which can limit their success.