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{{Redirect-distinguish2|Long Course|long course [[triathlon]]}}
{{Redirect-distinguish2|Long Course|long course [[triathlon]]}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
[[File:Baku Aquatic Palace, Olympic Pool.jpg|alt=Olympic sized swimming pool, used for Baku 2015 European Games|thumb|Olympic-sized swimming pool, used for [[Baku]] [[2015 European Games]]|363x363px]]
[[File:Baku Aquatic Palace, Olympic Pool.jpg|alt=Olympic sized swimming pool, used for Baku 2015 European Games|thumb|Olympic-sized swimming pool, used for [[Baku]] [[2015 European Games]]]]
An '''Olympic-size swimming pool''' conforms to regulated dimensions that are big enough for international competition. This type of [[swimming pool]] is used in the [[Olympic Games]], where the race course is {{convert|50|m|ft|1}} in length, typically referred to as "'''long course'''", distinguishing it from "[[short course]]" which applies to competitions in pools that are {{convert|25|m|ft|1}} in length, or {{convert|75|ft|m|1}} in the United States. If touch panels are used in competition, then the distance between touch panels should be either 25 or 50 metres to qualify for [[FINA]] recognition. This means that Olympic pools are generally oversized, to accommodate touch panels used in competition.
An '''Olympic-size swimming pool''' is a [[swimming pool]] which conforms to the regulations for length, breadth, and depth made by [[World Aquatics]] (formerly FINA) for [[swimming at the Summer Olympics]] and the [[Swimming (sport)|swimming]] events at the [[World Aquatics Championships]]. Different size regulations apply for other pool-based events, such as [[Diving (sport)|diving]], [[synchronized swimming]], and [[water polo]]. Less onerous breadth and depth regulations exist for lesser swimming competitions, but any "'''long course'''" event requires a course length of {{convert|50|m|ftin|1}}, as distinct from "[[short course]]" which applies to competitions in pools that are {{convert|25|m|ftin}} in length (or {{convert|75|ft|m|1}} in the United States). If touch pads are used in competition, then the distance is relative to the touch pads at either end of the course, so that the pool itself is generally oversized to allow for the width of the pads.


An Olympic-size swimming pool is used as a [[List of unusual units of measurement|colloquial unit]] of [[volume]], to make approximate comparisons to similarly sized objects or volumes. It is not a specific definition, as there is no official limit on the depth of an Olympic pool. The value has an [[order of magnitude]] of 1 megaliter (ML).<ref>[https://www.nist.gov/pml/wmd/metric/volume.cfm SI Units: Volume]</ref>
An Olympic-size swimming pool is used as a [[List of unusual units of measurement|colloquial unit]] of [[volume]], to make approximate comparisons to similarly sized objects or volumes. It is not a specific definition, as there is no maximum limit on the depth of an Olympic pool. The value has an [[order of magnitude]] of 1 megaliter (ML).<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2011-08-01 |title=SI Units - Volume |url=https://www.nist.gov/pml/owm/si-units-volume |journal=NIST |language=en}}</ref> Some [[style guide]]s caution against the [[hyperbole]] of describing any relatively large pool as "Olympic-size[d]".<ref>{{multiref|
{{cite book |last1=Bryson |first1=Bill |author-link=Bill Bryson |title=Bryson's Dictionary: for Writers and Editors |date=30 June 2012 |publisher=Transworld |isbn=978-1-4070-9439-7 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F4vTu-A5GeMC&pg=PT137 |language=en |chapter=Olympic-sized swimming pool |quote=Almost no-one owns a private pool that large, so the description in respect to private pools is almost always a gross exaggeration. }}|
{{cite book |last1=Martin |first1=Paul |title=The Wall Street Journal Guide to Business Style and Usage |date=15 June 2010 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4391-2269-3 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mjxg9iNAQUC&pg=PA175 |language=en |chapter=Olympic-size swimming pool |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mjxg9iNAQUC&pg=PA175 }}
}}</ref>


==Specifications==
==Specifications==
[[World Aquatics]] specifications for an Olympic-size pool are as follows:
[[Image:Swimming pool 50m 2008.svg|thumb|A simplified diagram of the [[FINA]] long course swimming pool standard.]][[World Aquatics]] specifications for an Olympic-size pool are as follows:


{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
!'''Physical property''' || '''Specified value'''
!'''Physical property''' || '''Specified value'''
|-
|-
|Length || {{cvt|50|m|ftin}}<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules">{{cite web|title=Fina Facilities Rules 2015-2017|url=https://www.fina.org/sites/default/files/finafacilities_rules.pdf|publisher=FINA|access-date=28 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191102193515/https://www.fina.org/sites/default/files/finafacilities_rules.pdf |archive-date=November 2, 2019}}</ref>
|Length || {{cvt|50|m|ftin}}<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules">{{cite web|title=Fina Facilities Rules 2021-2025|url=https://resources.fina.org/fina/document/2022/02/08/77c3058d-b549-4543-8524-ad51a857864e/210805-Facilities-Rules_clean.pdf|publisher=FINA|access-date=12 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240810051238/https://resources.fina.org/fina/document/2022/02/08/77c3058d-b549-4543-8524-ad51a857864e/210805-Facilities-Rules_clean.pdf |archive-date=10 August 2024}}</ref>
|-
|-
|Width || {{cvt|25|m|ftin}}<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/>
|Width || {{cvt|25|m|ftin}}<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/>
|-
|-
|Depth || {{cvt|2.5|m|ftin}} minimum, {{cvt|3|m|ftin}} recommended.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/>
|Depth || {{cvt|2|m|ftin}} minimum, {{cvt|3|m|ftin}} recommended when using the pool for multi discipline.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/>
|-
|-
|Number of lanes || 10
|Number of lanes || 10
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|Light intensity || minimum 1500 [[lux]] (140 [[footcandle]]s)
|Light intensity || minimum 1500 [[lux]] (140 [[footcandle]]s)
|-
|-
|Volume || {{cvt|2,500,000|L|m3 cuft}}, assuming a nominal depth of {{val|2|u=m}}.<br>
|Volume || {{cvt|2,500,000|L|m3 gal}}, assuming a nominal depth of {{val|2|u=m}}.<br>
About 2 [[acre-foot|acre-feet]].
About 2 [[acre-foot|acre-feet]] or 2.952 quattuordecillionths of a cubic [[light-year]].
|-
|-
|}
|}


There must be two spaces {{convert|2.5|m|abbr=on}} wide outside lanes 1 and 8 (in effect, two empty lanes).<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> The length of {{convert|50|m|ft|0}} must be between the touch pads at the end of each lane, if they are used.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> If starting blocks are used, then there must be a minimum depth of {{convert|1.35|m|ft}} from between {{convert|1|m|ft|0}} from the end of the pool to at least {{convert|6|m|ft|0}} from the end of the pool. At all other points, the minimum depth is {{convert|1|m|ft|0}}.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> If the pool is used for Olympic Games or World Championships, then the minimum depth is increased to {{convert|2.5|m|ft|0}}.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/>
There must be two spaces {{convert|2.5|m|abbr=on}} wide outside lanes 1 and 8 (in effect, two empty lanes).<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> The length of {{convert|50|m|ft|0}} must be between the touch pads at the end of each lane, if they are used.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> If starting blocks are used, then there must be a minimum depth of {{convert|1.35|m|ft}} from between {{convert|1|m|ftin|0}} from the end of the pool to at least {{convert|6|m|ftin|0}} from the end of the pool. At all other points, the minimum depth is {{convert|1|m|ftin|0}}.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> If the pool is used for Olympic Games or World Championships, then the minimum depth is increased to {{convert|2|m|ftin|0}}.<ref name="FINA Facilities Rules"/> Whereas the [[Water Cube]] pool used [[Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics|for the 2008 Olympics]] was {{convert|3|m|ftin|0}} deep, the temporary pool used [[Swimming at the 2024 Summer Olympics|in 2024]] was only {{convert|2.2|m|ftin|0}}, which commentators suggested made for slower race times.<ref>{{multiref|
{{cite news |last1=Aldridge |first1=David |title=Is Olympic pool's depth hurting swimmers? As world records hold, mystery rolls on |url=https://nytimes.com/athletic/5669136/2024/07/30/olympics-swimming-pool-depth-world-record-paris/ |access-date=1 August 2024 |work=The Athletic |publisher=The New York Times |date=30 July 2024}}|

{{cite news |last1=Keating |first1=Shane |title=The Conversation: Just one swimming world record has fallen at the Paris Olympics. Is the pool to blame? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/aug/01/paris-olympics-2024-swimming-world-records-less-slow-pool |access-date=1 August 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=1 August 2024}}
[[Image:Swimming pool 50m 2008.svg|thumb|left|460px|A simplified diagram of the [[FINA]] long course swimming pool standard.]]{{clear}}
}}</ref>{{clear}}


==Ten-lane pools==
==Ten-lane pools==

Latest revision as of 18:50, 18 December 2024

"Long Course" redirects here. Not to be confused with long course triathlon.

Olympic sized swimming pool, used for Baku 2015 European Games
Olympic-sized swimming pool, used for Baku 2015 European Games

An Olympic-size swimming pool is a swimming pool which conforms to the regulations for length, breadth, and depth made by World Aquatics (formerly FINA) for swimming at the Summer Olympics and the swimming events at the World Aquatics Championships. Different size regulations apply for other pool-based events, such as diving, synchronized swimming, and water polo. Less onerous breadth and depth regulations exist for lesser swimming competitions, but any "long course" event requires a course length of 50 metres (164 ft 0.5 in), as distinct from "short course" which applies to competitions in pools that are 25 metres (82 ft 0 in) in length (or 75 feet (22.9 m) in the United States). If touch pads are used in competition, then the distance is relative to the touch pads at either end of the course, so that the pool itself is generally oversized to allow for the width of the pads.

An Olympic-size swimming pool is used as a colloquial unit of volume, to make approximate comparisons to similarly sized objects or volumes. It is not a specific definition, as there is no maximum limit on the depth of an Olympic pool. The value has an order of magnitude of 1 megaliter (ML).[1] Some style guides caution against the hyperbole of describing any relatively large pool as "Olympic-size[d]".[2]

Specifications

[edit]
A simplified diagram of the FINA long course swimming pool standard.

World Aquatics specifications for an Olympic-size pool are as follows:

Physical property Specified value
Length 50 m (164 ft 1 in)[3]
Width 25 m (82 ft 0 in)[3]
Depth 2 m (6 ft 7 in) minimum, 3 m (9 ft 10 in) recommended when using the pool for multi discipline.[3]
Number of lanes 10
Lane width 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in)
Water temperature 25–28 °C (77–82 °F)
Light intensity minimum 1500 lux (140 footcandles)
Volume 2,500,000 L (2,500 m3; 660,000 US gal), assuming a nominal depth of 2 m.

About 2 acre-feet or 2.952 quattuordecillionths of a cubic light-year.

There must be two spaces 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) wide outside lanes 1 and 8 (in effect, two empty lanes).[3] The length of 50 metres (164 ft) must be between the touch pads at the end of each lane, if they are used.[3] If starting blocks are used, then there must be a minimum depth of 1.35 metres (4.4 ft) from between 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) from the end of the pool to at least 6 metres (19 ft 8 in) from the end of the pool. At all other points, the minimum depth is 1 metre (3 ft 3 in).[3] If the pool is used for Olympic Games or World Championships, then the minimum depth is increased to 2 metres (6 ft 7 in).[3] Whereas the Water Cube pool used for the 2008 Olympics was 3 metres (9 ft 10 in) deep, the temporary pool used in 2024 was only 2.2 metres (7 ft 3 in), which commentators suggested made for slower race times.[4]

Ten-lane pools

[edit]

At FINA's 2009 Congress, rules were approved for 10-lane courses for competition, as an alternative to the more traditional 8-lane course.

This version of the Olympic-sized swimming pool debuted in the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. Beforehand, the Summer Olympics featured the more traditional 8-lane course with a depth of roughly seven feet,[5] now the minimum depth requirement. Twenty-five world records were broken at this pool, although this is more heavily attributed to the polyurethane “supersuits” worn by many competitors (banned by FINA in 2010).

The new Olympic-sized swimming pool was designed to provide advantages to competitors. Increasing the lane count from eight to ten introduces a "buffer lane", helping to absorb waves generated by movements of the swimmers.[5] The increased depth of the pool assists the lane lines in dissipating water churn, thereby creating less hydrodynamic drag.[5]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "SI Units - Volume". NIST. 1 August 2011.
  2. ^
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Fina Facilities Rules 2021-2025" (PDF). FINA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  4. ^
  5. ^ a b c "China's Olympic Swimming Pool: Redefining Fast". NPR.org. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
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