I was wondering if being tall gives you an advantage in swimming because alot of the olympic male swimmers today are over 6 feet.
What do you guys think?
:D
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Former Member
In freestyle, I seem to recall seeing that physics limits the maximum speed that a person can achieve "on top" of the water and excluding dive/turn effects, to be about 1 body length per second. At higher speeds than this, one has to overcome the bow wave, which comes at a enormous energy cost. Therefore, all other things being equal, a taller person does have an advantage, at least as far as potential top end is concerned.
- LBJ (5'11", distance free type)
In freestyle, I seem to recall seeing that physics limits the maximum speed that a person can achieve "on top" of the water and excluding dive/turn effects, to be about 1 body length per second. At higher speeds than this, one has to overcome the bow wave, which comes at a enormous energy cost. Therefore, all other things being equal, a taller person does have an advantage, at least as far as potential top end is concerned.
- LBJ (5'11", distance free type)
