A COMPARISON OF JAPANESE FINALISTS TO OTHER FINALISTS IN THE 100 m SWIMMING RACES AT THE SYDNEY OLYMPIC GAMES

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the performance in 100 m swimming events at the Sydney Olympics between Japanese finalists and finalists from the other nations. The data collated by the B~omechanicsD epartment of the Australian lnstitute of Sport was used for this purpose. Swimming events were divided into four phases and the time taken to perform each phase was measured for 48 finalists. Although three Japanese swimmer performances were superior in the free swimming phase, their placing did not reflect this because of inferior performances in the start and turn. In contrast, the opposite situation arose with three other Japanese swimmers. These results suggest that not only the free swimming phase but also the starting and turning phases are important in determining race results in 100 m swimming events in international competition.