Medley swimming

Individual medley consists of a single swimmer swimming equal distances of the four strokes within one race.

The strokes are swum in this order:[1] A number of competitions in the individual medley are regularly contested, by both men and women.

The order of the strokes for medley relay is as follows:[5] Backstroke performances (only) are eligible for backstroke records, as they are performed under normal controlled starting conditions (i.e., reflex latency for the starting gun makes the average split time marginally quicker); for example, Ryan Murphy set the world record for the 100 m backstroke during the first leg of the 4 × 100 m medley relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Standard United States high school swim meets have short course events, that is the lengths are typically swum in a 25-yard or meter long pool.

Furthermore, many swimmers may perform better in a relay than in an individual race owing to a team spirit atmosphere.

During a 150-meter Individual Medley race, Henry Myers was one of the first to use an overarm recovery while swimming breaststroke, becoming one of the earliest forms of butterfly.

[7] In the United States, during the year of 1953, some medley races included the butterfly stroke, and the Amateur Athletic Union made it mandatory in 1954.

[8][9] From the beginning of the medley events, swimming times have drastically decreased due to science, technology, and improved training; e.g. technical swimming suits that reduce drag in the water and underwater cameras that help to analyze a swimmer's stroke.

[12] While swimming the Individual Medley, para-swimmers are put into different categories depending on their physical disability.