I am just returning to competition swimming after a 10 year hiatus.... So I've forgotten the finer points of some of the rules. My question, is it legal to curl your toes over the end of the starting block, or do your feet have to be back farther?
OTOH, if touch pads are not used, there is often no reasonable way for swimmers to gain any purchase at the start. Many pools either have stainless steel or some other smooth surface near the water level. (That's the case at the YMCA where I swim. The pool is less than 10 years old.) At practice you wind up having to curl your toes over the edge, which means you don't practice the way you will start in a race.
I realize this is moot for most meets (certainly at the high level) where touch pads and/or modern construction competition pools are the rule rather than the exception.
OTOH, if touch pads are not used, there is often no reasonable way for swimmers to gain any purchase at the start. Many pools either have stainless steel or some other smooth surface near the water level. (That's the case at the YMCA where I swim. The pool is less than 10 years old.) At practice you wind up having to curl your toes over the edge, which means you don't practice the way you will start in a race.
I realize this is moot for most meets (certainly at the high level) where touch pads and/or modern construction competition pools are the rule rather than the exception.
