Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Swim tip: High hips in fly


The images above are from the 2008 Olympics, men's 200-meter fly, a semi-final heat. Sorry, I don't have the swimmers' names. Do you?

The important instance on this photo is the high hips with the black suit in the middle frame. See how much of the swimmer's body is above the surface of the water. The lower back, the bottom, the hips, and even a large bit of the top of the back of the legs are clearly in the air.

To get the hips high, the kick has to be deep and downward. Plus, the head needs to be low. It is impossible to have high hips when the head and feet are up. Everything can't be UP.

With the high hips, the feel for the swimmer is to drive over the water, dolphin style. Don't sink along in the water.

Finally, some say it is very hard for the rookie swimmers to swim butterfly in a slow manner. Swim fast. Swim fly as fast as you can. Get moving as it is not possible to get high in the water when the total speed is more rock-like.

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