I was surprised to read that Michael Phelps last remaining world record was broken this week. I don’t follow swimming very closely but do remember that Michael Phelps was considered to be almost superhuman.
Got me wondering why his records haven’t lasted longer. Track records can stand for years (in some cases decades) before being broken. I understand that diet, training and technology all have an impact in improving performance. But why have his records not lasted as long as say Usain Bolt’s sprint records. What’s different about swimming.
In: Biology
Swimming is much more technique based than running, and the technique is constantly developing. Of course there’s technique that goes into high level running, but it doesn’t matter as much since air is so inviscid. Water is so viscous that exactly how you move yourself through it matters a great deal. Take an athlete who has neither specifically learned to run or to swim at a high level, chances are they’re much better at running than they are at swimming.
Also as an aside, Phelps’s last world record was broken a year ago, not this week
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