Term - Front-quadrant swimming = Gobbledeegook

There is not front quadrant swimming and should be dispelled as gobbledee-gook speak-ease. Every swimmer from toddler to World class swimmer uses some facsimile of all four quadrants. Let’s sort out some definitions so swimmers understand terminology. Front-quadrant swimming; it is not a style but a term. Each competitive stroke can be separated into various parts. If we use four parts or quadrants we can dissect each stroke into a front quadrant where propulsion occurs, a second quadrant where the finish or completion of the stroke occurs, a third quadrant where the recovery is initiated, and the fourth quadrant where the recovery makes the transition to the entry. The recovery (when the arms are out of the water) may be looked at as a style where coaches see swimmer with either a straight arm or bent arm recovery and even a variance of both. The position of a swimmers body (hip rotation) while they are swimming may also be looked at as a style when swimmers are either very horizontal / flat or rolling side to side. Pulling patterns are also looked at by coaches who will notice different sculling motions as swimmer will pull faster or more pronounced toward the midline of the body and away from it. The depth of the hand as it pulls back is also another cue coaches look for when dissecting a stroke. Coaches will also look at how a swimmer sets-up their stroke in either an Early Vertical Forearm catch (over-a-barrel position) or a Straight arm catch. And last but not least, a coach will look at a swimmer tempo or timing to see when the arms and legs move and if they’re working together effectively or not. Janet Evan’s straight arm recovery did not stop her from setting world records because when her arms where in the water she displayed effective propulsive / world class form.