Determinants of 1500-m Front-Crawl Swimming Performance in Triathletes: Influence of Physiological and Biomechanical Variables

Abstract

Purpose: To analyze the associations between physiological and biomechanical variables with the FINA (International Swimming Federation) points (ie, swimming performance) obtained in 1500-m front-crawl swimming to determine whether these variables can be used to explain triathletes’ FINA points. Methods: Fourteen world-class, international and national triathletes (10 male: 23.24 [3.70] y and 4 female: 23.36 [3.76] y) performed a 1500-m front-crawl swimming test in a short-course pool. Heart rate (HR), oxygen uptake (), and blood lactate concentrations were obtained before and after the test. HR was also measured during the effort. Highest value () was estimated by extrapolation. Clean swimming speed, turn performance, stroke rate, stroke length, and stroke index (SI) were obtained by video analysis. Results: Average 1500-m performance times were 1088 (45) seconds and 1144 (31) seconds for males and females, respectively. HR after the effort, , aerobic contributions, total energy expenditure, energy cost, and turn performance presented moderate negative associations with swimming performance (r ≈ .5). In contrast, respiratory exchange ratio, anaerobic alactic contribution, clean swimming speed, stroke length, and SI were positively related, with clean swimming speed and SI having a strong large association (r ≈ .7). A multiple stepwise regression model determined that 71% of the variance in FINA points was explained by SI and total energy expenditure, being predictors in 1500-m front-crawl swimming. Conclusions: Swimming performance in triathletes was determined by the athletes’ energy demands and biomechanical variables. Thus, coaches should develop specific technique skills to improve triathletes’ swimming efficiency.