What Is The Hardest Event in Long Course Swimming?
First, let me clarify one thing. I haven’t competed in long course since 2012 when I tried it for a summer, and to this day, this remains my opinion on it.
On the other hand, let me clarify some other things. While I may not have participated in a long-course meet since I was 13, I have attended a few meets as a spectator and I participated (more like survived) in a few long-course practices during a training trip during my junior year of college. I’ll never forget pinballing between the lane ropes during a backstroke set, sun ambushing my eyes, plastic rings scraping my sunburns, and wondering exactly what I had done to deserve this.
Anyhow, even if my participation in long course over the last decade or so amounts to the exact opposite of whatever a lion’s share is, I’d still like to believe that my experience watching it (much better than swimming it) amounts to enough that I can write this and know somewhat what I’m talking about.
Because of word limits, I’m limiting my debate to a few events:
200 Backstroke
To me, the 200 back, especially when done at an outdoor pool, seems akin to swimming backstroke in the middle of the ocean, and for good reason. While the stakes are obviously lower, I would put my morale during a long-course backstroke set at just a few spots higher than if I were swimming backstroke in the middle of the ocean, dry land no more than a speck of dust on the horizon. Instead of having a rough idea of how many strokes it will take to reach the flags, where you start thinking about your stroke count, there’s nothing but you, your head, and lots of kicking and looking at the ceiling. Is that a monkey hanging from the ceiling fan, or are you just hallucinating?
200 Butterfly
As someone who by no means was ever anything close to resembling a butterflier, the closest thing I can think of that physically resembles me swimming butterfly is the Titanic when it was at a 45-degree angle. The 200 fly seems to be that one event that you have to be superhuman to finish. I can barely swim it in short course. Long course would probably leave me hugging the bulkhead like Tom Holland at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. The short-course 200 fly at least has rest to some degree in the turns. I’m not sure how much rest it would be, but it has to be good for at least half a breath.
In his 2019 world record-breaking 200 fly swim at the World Championships, Hungarian Kristof Milak swam a 1:50.73, with the following splits: 24.66,28.22, 28.69, 29.16. That’s freaky fast. All four splits under 30. You have to be an absolute workhorse to succeed in this.
400 Individual Medley
There’s a reason the greatest Olympian of all time dropped the event from his race program: Even for someone with an absolutely ridiculous training regimen, such as Michael Phelps, the amount of just conditioning needed to succeed in the race made it arguably the hardest event that he swam.
As someone who swam it as one of his main events in college, it was hard enough, even with my coach putting us through training designed specifically for that event. It got to the point where I woke up in the hotel before finals, remembered that I had to swim it again that night and let out a groan so loud that I’m sure people down the hall thought someone was dying. And that was just short course.
Does the LCM 400 IM seem a little more simple when you really think about it? Sure. Just eight lengths as opposed to 16. When you’re swimming what seems to be a 200 if you squint juuust enough, it becomes a little more manageable. Is it easier, though? Not at all. For one, there are fewer turns, which could be a source of a few precious milliseconds of rest. There’s also the fact that, as I’ve previously mentioned, long course pretty much feels like you’re swimming in one of those endless pools until – surprise! – there’s a concrete wall five feet away from you. It takes some serious mental willpower to get through that type of stuff, and serious props should be given to anyone who can.
1500 Freestyle
It’s just shorter than the mile, and yet somehow much harder. Why? Let’s take a look. For one, it takes some serious strategizing. Go out too fast, and you risk tiring out and barely making it through the rest of the race. On the other hand, if you go out too slow, you risk getting left in the dust by your competition and possibly having a little too much energy left over in the end. So, you have to find a balance between the two. Then there’s that seemingly endless 50-meter lane. Get used to it, because you’re doing that for about 30 laps. Good luck, and may the odds be ever in your favor.
200 Breaststroke
Last but certainly not least, we have the 200 breast. Imagine the 100 breast, but longer. In a way, it almost seems like it should be easier than the short course 200. There’s no wall there to slow you down with that open turn that everyone is either amazing or awful at, so it’s basically just sprinting a lap, pacing a lap, sprinting a lap, and then leaving everything you have in the water for that final 50. And yet, for some reason, it’s not. At some point or another, your body kind of assumes a wall will be coming up and starts mentally preparing itself for that ~.10 second break that never comes and leaves you floundering for air.
So, there are a few options. What’s your hardest event?
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.
HANDS DOWN THE 200 BACK EITHER SHOT OR LONG COURSE BECAUSE YOU ARE PUSHING WATER OPPOSITE FROM YOUR NATURAL MOTION SUCH AS WALKING OR RUNNING. TRY WALKING BACKWARDS FOR 200 YARDS. I COACHED SWIMMING FOR TWENTY YEARS, AM IN THE TEXAS SWIMMING AND DIVING HALL OF FAME AND SWAM IN COLLEGE. HANDS DOWN THE 200 BACK IS THE HARDEST.
400IM every day of the week!
Thanks Gene! As a former college swimmer, backstroker and the authors father I have told him this. Thanks for backing this up as he rarely listens to me.
400 IM is definitely the most brutal event. I remember blasting sets of 6×400 IM from cruising to ultimate race pace – or whatever was left of you on LC. I have never seen stars shining so bright as in those sets.
200 fly sure kills you but at least you have some freaking hope as you see the concrete and Omega’s ahead of you. Unlike in 200 back when you lose sense of meters left on your 3rd and 4th lap and only feel unhuman pain in your hip flexors.