Recently I watched Denis Pankratov’s finals’ swims (two golds – 100 & 200m fly) at the Atlanta Olympics. His 25m long underwater kick helped him win these events. His underwater speed was obvious as he gained a significant advantage at the breakout point over the 2nd and 3rd place finishers whose times were 52.5 sec - still good ten years later (not wearing full body suit!).
What is interesting – his underwater kick was not streamlined. His hands were 10+ inches apart and they were making a wave-like motion. This technique breaks two main rules of the efficient underwater dolphin kick demonstrated by Ian Crocker in the March issue of The Swimming World magazine:
1. Keep the hands in a streamlined position, and
2. Keep the head hidden within the streamline.
Can anyone comment on why Pankratov’s (arguably wrong?) underwater kick was still fast:dunno:
Dmitri
Can anyone comment on why Pankratov’s (arguably wrong?) underwater kick was still fast:dunno:
This motion with the hands did cause some controversy at the Atlanta Olympics. Some people felt that he was sculling the water, which according to the way people read the rules at the time was illegal.
I don't think his motion was wrong for him. This may not be the best thing for other people, but it was one phase that helped him out. So, it may not be main stream but that doesn't make it wrong.
Or maybe Pankratov would have been faster if he knew the technique Phelps demonstrate.:rolleyes:
Or he might have been slower. No use in doing "if's" since we will never know.
I have always believed some of the things some of the time, but with experience, mine and others, I see mold-makers not following suit with the understood "way to do things."
Think about this: if you do a weight-room pulldown with both hands (front lat pulldown hands close together), you will pull xxx pounds. And then get on the pulldown machine where your arms and hands are further apart. Voila, you will pull more weight because more of your entire upper body is aiding the effort.
I think it is obvious that by his not streamlining to the norm and having arms/hands further apart, he is able to pull more water thus = faster. It overcomes the word streamlining. More of his body is being used.
I do a lot of under/over drills and when my arms/hands are further apart, I travel faster. Experiment and find out. Next question: is this legal by today's standards or is he swimming "another stroke" so to speak.
I think it is obvious that by his not streamlining to the norm and having arms/hands further apart, he is able to pull more water thus = faster. It overcomes the word streamlining. More of his body is being used.
But how much are your arms contributing to propulsion during the streamline? Typically not at all. In Pankratov's case maybe they did contribute a little bit. But I think the main reason to keep your arms slightly apart is to assist in the full-body dolphin motion. At least for me it seems very difficult to get the entire body involved with the arms tightly locked. It's easier if they're apart. It's gotta be a trade-off, though, because you are certainly not as aerodynamic with your hands apart.
But how much are your arms contributing to propulsion during the streamline? Typically not at all. In Pankratov's case maybe they did contribute a little bit. But I think the main reason to keep your arms slightly apart is to assist in the full-body dolphin motion. At least for me it seems very difficult to get the entire body involved with the arms tightly locked. It's easier if they're apart. It's gotta be a trade-off, though, because you are certainly not as aerodynamic with your hands apart.
I think each person has to test out what works best for him. As Wookie says, mainstream is not the answer for everyone. I have been doing tons of SDK-ing recently, so this topic is interesting. When I watched the videos of Crocker's recent 100 free and 100 fly at the SCY Champs, he didn't even look like he was doing a "full body dolphin" in the traditional undulating S. The dolphin action was very minimal but still had unbelievable propulsion.
When I do it, I always have my hands together like Crocker. But I might test it out the other way. I never thought to try it. It doesn't seem logically like it would be as aerodynamic. It seems more like the core and lower body is activated while underwater, as Good/Evil Smith suggests? But if you're flexible, doesn't it make sense to use the streamline and the hands fully locked position? Doesn't that actually require more flexibility than the hands apart method?
Any vids of Pankratov?
But if you're flexible, doesn't it make sense to use the streamline and the hands fully locked position? Doesn't that actually require more flexibility than the hands apart method?
Yes, I think ideally Crocker's position is the best, but like you said, it doesn't work for everybody.
I remember one swimmer (not a top flyer) told me that he didn’t lose to Pankratov in a 25m underwater dolphin race from a push-off. And their sprint time was not very fast. Another witness was impressed by the fast 50m underwater swim Denis had as a teenager.
Probably Pankratov developed this underwater dolphin technique that efficiently blended into his world record times in the 100m and 200m fly. If you swim 4 x 20 - 25m underwater in a 200m fly, as he did, you have to be careful not to run out of fuel at the 175m mark or even earlier. You might have seen those poor flyers who “hit a wall” just 15 meters before an actual wall. Spectators got a mixed feeling of sadness and entertainment. :applaud:
I think his underwater swim is a good example of a well balanced racing strategy for the whole race at the best possible time.
