Objective To explore whether the medalists in 1 500-m freestyle swimming choose different pacing strategies from their competitors,so as to determine the most effective pacing strategy characteristics to obtain victory in swimming race.Methods The 1 500-m freestyle finalists in World Swimming Championships from 2003 to 2023 were selected as candidates of this study.According to the final ranking of the 175 elite athletes in the race,the split time,cumulative time were calculated,respectively.The differences of the main indicators in pacing strategies between medalists and their competitors were compared,and the above variables were selected for one-way ANOVA statistical analysis.Results The medalists had a significant speed advantage regardless of split time in the race,as well as the velocity of the starting stage,intermediate swim and end spurt(P<0.01).After the normalization of the cumulative time,the differences between the medalists and 4th-8th athletes in the percentage of split time and normalized velocity were mainly reflected in the last 400 m or so of the first and second half of the race(P<0.05).Regardless of whether they won medals or not,the pacing strategies of male freestyle swimmers were mostly reverse J-and U-shaped,while those of the female were mainly reverse J-shaped(90.9%).The diving start indicator(DSI)and end-spurt indicator(ESI)of medalists were higher,but the ESI of medalists was significantly different from that of 4th-8th athletes(P<0.05).Meanwhile,the coefficient of variation(CV)and the median and quartile of the density distribution of CV were significantly lower in intermediate stage.Conclusions All 1 500-m freestyle finalists follow a similar parabolic pacing strategies regardless of gender and final race ranking.Compared with their competitors,the medalists choose a relatively conservative starting strategy,a more even pace through the middle section of the race and a strong end-spurt.In summary,the reverse J-shape is an effective pacing strategy for the success of elite freestyle athletes in 1 500-m swimming competitions.

Objective To explore whether the medalists in 1 500-m freestyle swimming choose different pacing strategies from their competitors,so as to determine the most effective pacing strategy characteristics to obtain victory in swimming race.Methods The 1 500-m freestyle finalists in World Swimming Championships from 2003 to 2023 were selected as candidates of this study.According to the final ranking of the 175 elite athletes in the race,the split time,cumulative time were calculated,respectively.The differences of the main indicators in pacing strategies between medalists and their competitors were compared,and the above variables were selected for one-way ANOVA statistical analysis.Results The medalists had a significant speed advantage regardless of split time in the race,as well as the velocity of the starting stage,intermediate swim and end spurt(P<0.01).After the normalization of the cumulative time,the differences between the medalists and 4th-8th athletes in the percentage of split time and normalized velocity were mainly reflected in the last 400 m or so of the first and second half of the race(P<0.05).Regardless of whether they won medals or not,the pacing strategies of male freestyle swimmers were mostly reverse J-and U-shaped,while those of the female were mainly reverse J-shaped(90.9%).The diving start indicator(DSI)and end-spurt indicator(ESI)of medalists were higher,but the ESI of medalists was significantly different from that of 4th-8th athletes(P<0.05).Meanwhile,the coefficient of variation(CV)and the median and quartile of the density distribution of CV were significantly lower in intermediate stage.Conclusions All 1 500-m freestyle finalists follow a similar parabolic pacing strategies regardless of gender and final race ranking.Compared with their competitors,the medalists choose a relatively conservative starting strategy,a more even pace through the middle section of the race and a strong end-spurt.In summary,the reverse J-shape is an effective pacing strategy for the success of elite freestyle athletes in 1 500-m swimming competitions.