Swimming is a sports discipline in which it is necessary to overcome a given distance by swimming as quickly as possible. At the same time, it is allowed to swim under water no more than 15 meters after the start and at the moment of pushing off from the side (when changing the direction of movement in the pool).

There are several types of swimming in which competitions are held:

Freestyle swimming – an athlete is allowed to swim in any way that is most suitable for a swimmer, it is allowed to change styles during the course of the distance.

Over time , the priority techniques of freestyle swimming changed in the following order:
— breaststroke was used for the very first time, Nicholas Winman did a great job of studying it and in 1853 published a whole book on the technique of swimming with this style;
— over-arm originated in the middle of the 19th century and was swimming on its side;
— the trejen style became known to the world in 1873, it was demonstrated at competitions by the English swimmer John Arthur Trejen;
— crawl has now replaced all previous styles in freestyle swimming, as it is more effective. Richmond Cavill used it for the first time to win.

Backstroke swimming received the status of an Olympic sport in 1900. At the beginning of existence, athletes tried to swim with an inverted breaststroke, but later the crawl on the back became a priority. The athlete must swim on his back all the time, the rotational movements of the body cannot exceed 90 degrees relative to the horizontal according to the rules. The position of the head is not regulated. A 15-meter swimmer's distance under water is allowed. The start takes place with your back to the water, holding onto the side with your hands and pushing off with your feet from it.

Breaststroke and butterfly were included in the Olympic program in 1904. The rules are quite difficult and disqualification is possible if they are violated. The rules of the competition in butterfly and breaststroke swimming can be found here.

There are also complex swimming, when an athlete overcomes a distance using different swimming styles on its individual segments, as well as a combined relay race.

The competition pool plays a big role. FINA rules state that official international competitions can only take place in pools with a length of 50 or 100 meters. And since 1957 , world records can be counted in pools with a length of 50 m . Since it is easier to set a record in the 25 meter because of the possibility of pushing off from the side when turning (changing the direction of movement).

Swimming in open bodies of water (in open water) is quite widespread. The most popular for today is a swim across the English Channel. And the distance of 10 kilometers in 2008 was included in the program of the Olympiad.

An important component of the swimming process is a swimming suit. Initially, it was a suit made of natural materials, which covered almost the entire body, after that, silk swimming trunks were used. Over time, they were replaced by synthetic materials. The achievement of new high results was achieved by the use of polyurethane suits, but FINA listed them in the category of technological doping. Because new records were set thanks not to diligent training, but to minimal resistance to water (the merit of the suit). Therefore, it is now allowed to use only textile suits.