Swimming

Swimming in Oregon Swimming is an important skill to learn in Oregon because the state is surrounded

by water. There are may different sports that are grounded in swimming such as water skiing,

wakeboarding, kayaking and wind surfing. Children can begin swim lessons in Oregon when they are six months old.

Surfing

Kayaking

Water Skiing

Wind Surfing

Wakeboarding

Competitive Swimming

Competitive swimming is a very popular sport in Oregon. The sport is gaining popularity because it is an Olympic Year. The United States is home to some of the fastest swimmers in the world. Many

swimmers come to the United States to train with American coaches. Inga de Bruijn, a swimmer from the Netherlands, is a World Record holder. She trains in

Portland, Oregon Tualatin Hills Swim Team. The Northwest is also home to Megan Quann, an Olympic Gold Medalist.

Inga de Bruijn

Megan Quann

Competitive Swimming in Portland

Portland has 11 public pools and each pool has a summer swim team.

All public and privet high schools in Portland offer swim programs in the winter.

There are 8 privet swim clubs in Portland. These swim clubs offer elite training opportunities for swimmers in Oregon.

Some privet colleges in Oregon have swim teams including Willamette University and Lynnfield University.

Strokes

There are four main strokes in Swimming Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle When all of these strokes are put together they make the

individual medley Swimmers compete in races that range from 50 meters to 1500

meters

Butterfly Backstroke

Breaststroke

Freestyle

Breaststroke and ButterflyBreaststroke and butterfly are shot access strokes. Here is how to swim them.

Keep your legs close together and pull them up toward your chest. At the same time, hold your palms together and up against your chest, as if you were in prayer.

Kick out and apart with your legs, and then quickly squeeze them together. Try to imitate the way a frog kicks. After the kick, streamline your body by pointing your toes and extending your arms completely.

Glide for a moment with your arms fully extended, then turn your palms outward and repeat the stroke

Hold your legs together and extend your arms above your head.

Kick your legs up and down once in a whipping motion, as if you were a dolphin.

. Pull both of your arms out of the water

together, along with the big kick. This will help propel your body forward and out of the water.

Lift your head up and breathe while you quickly pull both arms out of the water and swing them forward. Head and arms reenter the water together at the same time.

Freestyle and BackstrokeFreestyle and Backstroke and short access strokes. Here is how to swim them.

Keep your legs straight, but not rigid, with your toes pointed out, and kick up and down. Continue kicking the entire time.

Move your arms in a windmill motion opposite each other. While one arm is extended completely out, the other should be all the way back, almost against the side of your body.

Lift your other arm out of the water and move it all the way forward.. Bend at the elbow and drag your fingertips along the surface of the water. Enter the water with your fingertips and completely extend the arm.

Breathe on one side by turning your head to that side as the arm comes out of the water.

Floating on you back, kick your legs up and down. Keep your legs straight, but not entirely rigid. Your toes should be pointed out. Try not to make a big splash with your kick.

Rotating your shoulders, move you arm in a windmill motion. Keep one arm straight as you raise it out of the water . At the same time, the other arm should be bent and pulling a cupped hand along your side in the water. Your hand should enter the water pinky-first.

Keep your head floating back in the water, with your eyes looking up. Breathe normally.

Athlete Focus

Robert Ellertson is the fastest sprint Freestyle in Oregon.

He trains with the Portland Aquatic Club and he has trained at the Olympic Training Center in Salt Lake City

Robert trains between 4 and 5 hours per day.

Robert also swims for Grant High School, teaches swim lessons and coaches a Summer Swim Team.

Robert Swimming at the State Championships

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