Swimming is the first of three sports an athlete completes consecutively in a triathlon. An Olympic triathlon is considered an endurance sport because an athlete must first swim, then cycle, then run the race. In an Olympic-distance triathlon -- also commonly referred to as a Standard or Intermediate distance -- a 1.5-km swim is followed by a 40-km bike ride and a 10-km run.
Distance
Swim training in the three to four months before an Olympic triathlon usually would take place at least twice per week, for sessions between 30 and 90 minutes. The 1.5-km triathlon swim -- which equates to a distance of 0.93 of a mile -- is equivalent to 60 lengths, or 30 laps, of a standard 25-meter swimming pool. For reasons of convenience and safety, many triathletes do a proportion if not all of their race training in a swimming pool rather than in open water.
Speed
An article published in the May 1997 issue of the "International Journal of Sports Medicine" indicates that a high-functioning athlete would typically complete the swim section of an Olympic triathlon in roughly 30 minutes. This would equate to a speed of 50 meters, or two lengths of a standard swimming pool, every minute. During training, you will likely swim at faster and slower speeds than your intended race pace. During the triathlon, your pacing in the swim section of the race will likely affect your overall time.
Technique
Triathlons build an athlete's endurance because multiple sports are performed back-to-back. Because both the cycling and running sections of the race are relatively hard on the legs, swimmers in an Olympic triathlon often wish to use their arms heavily during the swim section, saving energy in their legs for the rest of the race. Triathlon swimming technique involves long, smooth swimming strokes that allow the swimmer to glide through the water and gain the maximum distance from each stroke.
Open-Water Swimming
The swimming part of a triathlon will usually take place in open water -- for example, a freshwater lake, or part of the ocean. Swimmers may have to swim across a body of open water in a straight line, swim out to a marker point and back to shore, or swim a rectangular route market by buoys. In open-water swimming, triathletes use landmarks to help them swim in a straight line. Pre-race training -- whether in open water or in the swimming pool -- will involve sighting practice.
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