I read the following PDF regarding the updated rule and interpretation for the freestyle portion of the IM:
www.usms.org/.../20150911_fina_im_interpretation.pdf
My question is regarding the freestyle flip turn. When you turn, you flip onto your back, push off and start twisting to the proper position for freestyle. It usually happens fairly fast so you're not completely on the back for any more than one kick worth at the most and by then you've begun rotating to the side. Honestly, I still flip slightly diagonally, so my feet land a bit off-horizontal but I've been working on correcting it to what has been shown to me as a more proper technique.
But I know as soon as I post this notice for my masters team on Wednesday, they are going to ask the same questions. I would assume that this position of being on the back is normal in freestyle and wouldn't constitute backstroke swimming but I've been wrong plenty of times in trying to interpret rules. But it gets me into wondering, what's going to be the line between a normal freestyle flip turn and too much time on your back? Obviously, no SDK-ing on your back down the length of the pool but exactly how fast does that twist need to be? Is there a standpoint from the officials on this yet?
Thanks in advance!
I think they should add" when the feet leave the wall , the swimmer must be past 90 to be on their stomach"
Would this solve the new ruling?
Nope, that's actually the exact issue with the new ruling.
The ruling just says pushing off on your back is illegal, which in effect says you must be at/past 90 towards your stomach when your feet leave the wall. Your proposal is just different language for the same thing the new ruling mandates.
Quite a few people are *not* at/past 90 towards their stomach when they leave the wall on a flipturn. From the Masters and kids I coach, the folks who haven't done lazy or sloppy turns and are not already past 90 towards their stomach are generally somewhere between 100-110 towards their backs at the time their feet leave the wall, but have rotated past 90 within maybe half a second.
That's the crux of the issue.
I see a ton of the type of flipturn you see in this video (and that's the type of flipturn I do).
www.youtube.com/watch
That type of turn is no longer legal in the IMs or the medley relays. If FINA had said you just need to be in the process of a continuous rotation towards your stomach when your feet leave the wall in the IMs/medley relays, then it would still be legal.
I think they should add" when the feet leave the wall , the swimmer must be past 90 to be on their stomach"
Would this solve the new ruling?
Nope, that's actually the exact issue with the new ruling.
The ruling just says pushing off on your back is illegal, which in effect says you must be at/past 90 towards your stomach when your feet leave the wall. Your proposal is just different language for the same thing the new ruling mandates.
Quite a few people are *not* at/past 90 towards their stomach when they leave the wall on a flipturn. From the Masters and kids I coach, the folks who haven't done lazy or sloppy turns and are not already past 90 towards their stomach are generally somewhere between 100-110 towards their backs at the time their feet leave the wall, but have rotated past 90 within maybe half a second.
That's the crux of the issue.
I see a ton of the type of flipturn you see in this video (and that's the type of flipturn I do).
www.youtube.com/watch
That type of turn is no longer legal in the IMs or the medley relays. If FINA had said you just need to be in the process of a continuous rotation towards your stomach when your feet leave the wall in the IMs/medley relays, then it would still be legal.
