I enjoy following swimming and the history of the sport, but I’m sure I’m more novice than I realize in the sport. I just saw that one of our U. of Tennessee swimmers, Jordan Crooks, broke the WR twice in the 50 M in short course swimming over meters. I did not know there was short course swimming over meters. I thought all short course swimming was over yards. Well, better late than never to learn this. Is it just in the US where pools are 50 meters by 25 yards? Also, how do swimmers in U.S. pools train for short course meets over meters? Guessing you have to have the movable bulkhead? Also, are meets often contested in Europe and elsewhere outside the U.S. over SCM? Thanks for any education on this.
Swimming in yards is mostly an American thing. All big international competitions (Olympics, World Champs, etc.) are swum in a 50m pool. There is a world short course competition in a 25m pool, but 50m seems to be the default. Many competitions in New Zealand for younger club swimmers occur in 25m pools, especially in smaller cities, as that’s what’s available.
There’s SCY, SCM, and LCM. The difference between SCY and SCM isn’t very noticeable since an SCM pool is just about 2.5 yards longer for 25 meters. So a 50m pool is about 55 yards. Training won’t change much from SCY to SCM—maybe just adjusting stroke counts. The major change occurs when switching between short course and long course.
Most competition pools in the US are SCY but can sometimes be converted to LCM. In most European countries, they typically swim in LCM or switch between SCM and LCM.
@Francis
Interesting! Thanks! I guess swimming SCY hasn’t hurt American swimmers in international competitions. However, if many schools don’t have 50m pools, I’m unsure why they don’t swim LC here.
Jonah said:
@Francis
Interesting! Thanks! I guess swimming SCY hasn’t hurt American swimmers in international competitions. However, if many schools don’t have 50m pools, I’m unsure why they don’t swim LC here.
Not hurt them? The secret to speed is training in yards pools! Athletes learn starts, turns, and speed in yards, and then transfer those habits to the 50m pools. It’s not counterintuitive!
It’s one extra stroke…
In Australia, competitive short course swimming isn’t huge but seems to be gaining popularity. We have a lot of 25m pools for training, especially indoors, but the majority are 50m.
Zaden said:
In Australia, competitive short course swimming isn’t huge but seems to be gaining popularity. We have a lot of 25m pools for training, especially indoors, but the majority are 50m.
Thanks! Is SCM considered less prestigious than long course? Personally, I wish all colleges in the US would just swim long course meters. I’m guessing major schools have 50m pools, so why not?
@Jonah
Not true that most US colleges have LCM pools. Fewer colleges have them than you’d think; many have SCY pools built decades ago with no space for a 50m pool. Yes, big schools, especially in the South, have LCM pools, but very few in the Northeast do.
@San
Thanks! I wasn’t aware; learning new things tonight!
@Jonah
It’s definitely not prioritized or as prestigious. It’s more popular in winter, particularly with juniors, because it can be swum indoors, but it doesn’t attract the same attention as LC.
@Jonah
50m pools are more expensive to build and maintain, needing more space, so short course pools are common. In the US, about half of short course pools are yards and half are meters. Meets and records have been kept for both for many years. Most NCAA and high school meets are yards, although in 2000 NCAA champs were held in SCM. Many older pools were 20m, 33.3 yards, or 55 yards but these are mostly replaced. Since the Olympics are in 50m pools, more prefer them if space and funding allow.
@Carson
Appreciate this information! Thank you!
@Jonah
Suggest that idea to NCAA Division 1 swimmers!
Pools in the US tend to be 25 yards (SCY). Some places with serious swim programs have 50m (LCM) pools, which are often 25 yards wide and have movable bulkheads. Most competitive swimmers have a 50m pool nearby for meets, even if they train SCY.
Typically, SCM meets are held at LCM pools with the bulkhead adjusted to 25m. There are some true 25m (SCM) pools in the US, but they’re rare since SCM is uncommon here. We usually swim SCY for school and winter club swimming or LCM for summer club swimming.
SCY is sometimes seen in older Canadian pools. When I was competitively swimming (trained in SCY), the extra 7 feet in SCM pools was noticeable.
In the US, the two common pool lengths are 25 yards and 50m. Everywhere else, the common lengths are 25m and 50m. Competitions held in a 50m pool are usually considered the most prestigious.