Performance evolution in Olympic swimming over the last 100 years: A retrospective stroke-based analysis

This retrospective study examined the historical progression of Olympic swimming performance across 24 Olympic Games from Paris 1924 to Paris 2024. Finalist race data for 1553 women and 1641 men were extracted from the official World Aquatics database, including final times, reaction times, and calculated swimming speeds across all strokes (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly) and Olympic distances (50–1500 m). Across all strokes and distances, final times demonstrated substantial reductions over the century, with the most pronounced improvements observed in freestyle and long-distance events. The largest percentage improvements in performance were observed during specific Olympic cycles, including 1956, 1972, and 2008, which coincided with major developments in pool engineering, competition regulations, training methodologies, and swimsuit technology. Swimming speeds increased consistently in all events, while reaction-time analyses revealed significant improvements across Olympic Games during the period in which reaction-time data were recorded. Overall, these findings demonstrate substantial long-term improvements in Olympic swimming performance and provide a comprehensive historical overview of performance changes across strokes, distances, and sexes. The periods associated with the largest performance improvements coincided with major technological, biomechanical, and regulatory developments in the sport. The results may serve as valuable benchmarks for coaches, athletes, and sports scientists to evaluate long-term performance trends and prepare for future international competitions.