What Are the Dimensions of an Olympic Swimming Pool?
Because precise times are so crucial to competitive swimming, it's also vital that Olympic swimming pools are of uniform dimensions, so that times raced in all pools can be compared fairly. The Fédération Internationale de Natation oversees the dimensions of swimming facilities used in international competitions. These dimensions cover the size and depth of the pool and how swimming lanes should be marked.
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Length
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The Fédération Internationale de Natation has established that an official Olympic swimming pool must be 54.68 yards long. FINA also sanctions pools that are 27.34 yards long. However, most pools used in the Olympics and other major competitions are 54.68 yards long. The dimensions are the actual distances between the touch pads used for electronic scoring if such pads are in place in that particular pool. That means that if a touch pad is going to be part of the pool, the distances between the opposite walls must be slightly longer to accommodate the width of the touch pads.
Depth
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A minimum depth of 1.48 yards must be must be maintained from about 1 yard out from one end of the pool to about 6 yards from the opposite wall in pools that use starting blocks. A depth of at least 1.09 yards is required everywhere else in the pool. A deeper pool can result in less turbulence and less wave action, as was discovered in the Olympic pool used in the 2008 Beijing Games. A deeper pool means waves and turbulence dissipate more on the bottom, which is farther away from the swimmers.
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Lanes
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Lanes in an official Olympic-sized pool should be 2.73 yards wide. A buffer of at least 0.22 yards must be in place on the outside of the first and last lanes in the pool. Most Olympic swimming pools have eight lanes and in many competitions all eight lanes are used in each race. However, in the Beijing Olympic pool, where many world records fell in 2008, there are 10 lanes, plus the outside buffer. The wider pool, in which only the center eight lanes were used, also helped minimize wave action from hitting the side walls and interfering with the swimmers.
Lane Markings
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A line painted a contrasting color must be painted or otherwise placed down the center of each lane on the bottom of the pool. The lines should be between 0.22 yards and 0.33 yards wide, and they should stop 2.19 yards from each end wall. The ending of each lane line should be marked by a distinct cross. Pools that are too deep can affect the clarity of the lane lines, making it more difficult for swimmers to see where they are in the pool.
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References
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