Swimming is an activity that’s been around for a long time. Some of its first forms have been in ancient caves that have illustrations of people swimming. Some others include in the Greek epic poems “The Illiad” and “The Odyssey.” During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, swimming began to be a structured activity and later on in history became a popular sport. In 1896, it was a portion of the Olympics in Athens, Greece and it continues to be part of the summer Olympics. Currently, swimming is the second most popular exercise in the United States with millions of people partaking in it.
Swimming is composed of many different strokes, one of them being the front crawl, also known as the freestyle. This stroke is very simple and good for swimmers that are just starting. The leg kick requires a simple flutter kick while the legs are going in an interchanging order. The knees are a little bent with the feet and ankles loosened. In order to have a good forward momentum, the swimmer should highlight the down-kick more. While using the changing windmill motion between right and left arm, the hands should be cupped with relaxed wrists and hands. Another key fact for the arm stroke is the pulling arms underwater should be in an “S” pattern and the arms must pull the water with equal power and arm reach. This will guarantee the swimmer that they’re going in a straight line. For the body positioning, the freestyle requires the swimmer to twist on the long-axis, from the head down to the toe, of the body. Therefore the front crawl is known as a long-axis stroke. One important thing to remember with long-axis strokes is the swimmer must have the hips and legs aligned and so they don’t sink. Another important fact is to r...
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According to Marilyn Stokstad, "the visual arts are among the most sophisticated forms of human communication, at once shaping and being shaped by their social context (xxxviii)." As this quote implies, artistic pieces invariably are a reflection of the culture in which they were created. Thus, art is a potent means of deciphering the values and belief systems of ancient societies. Apoxyomenos (330 BCE), or The Scraper, created by the sculptor Lysippos, is an enduring testament to the importance ascribed to athletics by the citizens of ancient Greece.
Imagery such as “Deliberately fracturing glass moving down through pools'; conveys the mental picture of the water being glass shattered with every stroke. Shattering glass suggesting danger and fear. “Barely missing the moon’s pale hiss,'; portrays the image of a deadly snake, heightening the risk of the challenge. The depiction of “white nudes between each sizzling shaft,'; brings to the reader the vulnerability the swimmer feels running from one danger to another. Also, the affect of a challenging computer game is again played. The swimmer is like a loosing player challenging each feat and then faced with yet another.
Cheever, John W. “The Swimmer.” Charters, Ann. Story and Its Writer. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. Print.
Imagine swimming in the big Olympic pools. All you can hear is the muffled noises of ecstatic fans cheering. All you can feel is the water urging you to keep swimming. Then you reach your hand out and feel the wall. You emerge out of the crystal blue pool water and have won! Michael Phelps and Dara Torres are two extraordinary swimmers who live their lives in the Olympic pools. Both Torres Is Tops and Michael’s Magic deal with the challenges and successes of Dara and Michael’s Olympic careers, but they do so in different ways. Let’s start our swim through the lives of these two Olympic champions.
In John Cheever’s short story, “The Swimmer” he conveys the transformation of the character through the use of the literary element of setting. The story begins in an American, middle class, suburbs. After what seems to be a night of partying and drinking. Neddy Merrill, the main character initially appears very optimistic; he has a perfect family, high social status and very few problems in his life. In spite of his age, he feels young and energetic therefore decides to swim across town through the neighborhood pools. However, his journey becomes less and less enjoyable as the day unfolds. The water become murky, uninviting and he becomes exhausted. Also the people in his surrounding become less cordial including his mistress who wants nothing to do with him. His voyage then comes to an end when he arrives to an empty, abandoned home. The central idea suggests that an unhealthy obsession with the materialistic aspects of life can lead to alienation.
To do a front dive a diver pushes his hips upward just slightly as he leaves the board. After he had begun to go up into the air, he throws his arms downward just enough to make is upper torso rotate around his hips. At the peak of the dive, the diver tightens his stomach muscles and pulls his legs up towards the sky, leaving his body in a perfect upside-down position to enter the water head-first.
Fahey, Thomas D., EdD. Specialist in Sports Conditioning Workbook and Study Guide. California: International Sports Sciences Association, 2007. Print
water, curved and smooth and green.'; This seems to illustrate the peacefulness of the situation, almost creating a lazy, calm atmosphere. However, the imagery within “The Swimmer'; is quite opposite. “The Swimmer'; tends to portray a scene of force, as there is no evidence of the peaceful interaction between man and water as found in “Lone Bather.'; Evidence of such force ...
The Swimmer, a short story by John Cheever, tells the tale of Neddy Merrill and his decision to “swim” all the way home. It is an odd sort of an idea, and he fancies himself an adventurer exploring a new river. The river is really made of swimming pools that stretch across town, which collectively he believes will lead him home. Along his journey however, startling occurrences take place, leading to the conclusion that Neddy’s water-filled journey isn’t what it seems. The “swim” Neddy takes is really hinting at an alcohol problem that he is in denial about, and the affects it has had on his life.
“I’ve often wondered what it would be like if we taught young people swimming the same way we teach sexuality. If we told them that swimming was an important adult activity one they will all have to be skilled at when they grow up, but we never talked with them about it. We never showed them the pool . . . but when they asked a question about how swimming felt or what it was about, they would be greeted with blank or embarrassed looks . . . Miraculously, some might learn to tread water, but many would drown” (11).
One balmy summer morning my friends convinced me to come swim in Grapevine Lake, which would be very enticing if I was a strong swimmer or had any swimming experience whatsoever. However, I’m not going to ruin a good, scorching summer day staying home wasting my time playing video
Did u know that there is a lot of history behind Olympic swimming? It is amazing how much history there is behind it. According to http://www.olympic.org/swimming-equipment-and-history. The swimming Olympics were started in 1896. The very first Olympic events were free style (crawl) or breaststroke. Backstroke was added in 1904. In the 1940s, breaststroke swimmers discovered they could go faster by bring both arms forward over their heads. Ur body is longer when you do that. This practice was immediately forbidden in breaststro...
Everyone has a story that has led them to be who they are today and this story is mine. When I was younger, I’d spend my days in the pool. My mother encouraged me to change my weekend pleasures of floating on water, to a daily sport that I compete amongst others. Swimming has made me to be who I am today in a vast amount of ways. This sport taught me to push past the limits that I set for myself. Swimming has made me strive to be the best I can be physically, mentally, and personally. It has shown me that to work as a team, we can accomplish more than what one person can.
Any form of competitive swimming did not appear until the 1800s in Europe when schools accepted swimming as a natural part of life education. In the 18th and 19th century it became a competitive sport than being just a life saving skill. Swimming teams and clubs started to evolve all over the world. Although England was the first country to have an inside pool they aren’t one of the first countries of all times , China, Germany and Sweden were the first countries in swimming history. England and also invented the side stroke and after this one the freestyle evolved. Although there aren’t swimming competitions of side stroke it’s also known as a global stroke. In this essay I’m going to explain the changes of swimming for example the technology in swimming pools, the changes in bodies of the people that swam and more.