Aquatics Coaching Guide - Special Olympics

Special Olympics Aquatics Coaching Guide
Created: February 2004
Teaching Aquatics Skills - Stroke Development
Freestyle/Front Crawl
Open mouth to inhale
Do not attempt to breathe in through a small opening. This increases pressure and the chance that athletes will swallow
water. If their mouths are open wide and some water gets in, have them spit it back out after getting air. This is normal.
Try not to panic.
Inhale quickly and exhale slower. Inhale quickly when the head is turned and the arm is in the correct position.
Exhale much slower so that it continues until the next inhalation.
Open mouth when exhaling
Do not attempt to exhale through the nose. Some air will come out of the nose anyway. Forcing all of the air out of the
nose can disturb sensitive membranes and create pain. If an athlete’s nose drains or he/she gets headaches after
swimming, check the way the athlete exhales.
Turn head to breathe with the arm pull
Timing the head turn to the arm pull is crucial to breathing correctly. Athletes cannot wait until their arms gets back
before turning their heads. Swimmers must perform these motions at the same time. Attempt to get the athlete’s head
turned just prior to the hand coming out of the water.
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