Comparative Analysis of Starting Technique in Competitive Swimming and Finswimming

Abstract

The study purpose was to determine time characteristics of the start phases: “jump” and “flight” performed by highly-skilled swimmers in competitive swimming and finswimming during the start from the starting block.
 Materials and methods. The participants of the pedagogical study were 8 competitive swimming female athletes, 7 – bifin swimming athletes, 4 – monofin swimmers. The swimmers were highly-skilled: among them were three international masters of sport, thirteen masters of sport of Ukraine, and three candidate masters of sport. The study recorded the following indicators: motor reaction time, horizontal flight speed (in different sections); flight acceleration (in different sections).
 Results. The difference in horizontal speed in the first section is not statistically significant (p > 0.05). The bifin swimming athletes show higher speed in sections 2 and 4; in section 3, higher speed is shown by the monofin swimmers (p < 0.001). The bifin swimmers show higher results in flight acceleration in sections 1, 2 and 4; in section 3, higher acceleration is shown by the monofin swimmers (p < 0.001).
 Conclusions. For comparative analysis of the starting technique, it is advisable to use such indicators as motor reaction time, horizontal flight speed, flight acceleration, and flight trajectory indicators as the main criteria.
 The study found that the time of motor reaction in competitive swimming is the shortest and it is the longest in monofin swimming. The athletes show the highest horizontal flight speed in section 3, the highest acceleration in section 2. The monofin swimming athletes show the highest acceleration in section 3. The second discriminant function with the emphasis on the most informative variables can be used to select the most rational starting technique in finswimming.