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Updated: Jul 6, 2026

Swimming Performance Assessment in Fishes
Published on: May 20, 2011
Analysis of the effect of swimmer's head position on swimming performance using computational fluid dynamics
1Laboratoire de Thermomécanique, Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Moulin de la Housse, BP 1039, 51687 Reims cedex 2, France.
Abstract:
The aim of this numerical work is to analyze the effect of the position of the swimmer's head on the hydrodynamic performances in swimming. In this initial study, the problem was modeled as 2D and in steady hydrodynamic state. The geometry is generated by the CAD software CATIA and the numerical simulation is carried out by the use of the CFD Fluent code. The standard k-epsilon turbulence model is used with a specific wall law. Three positions of the head were studied, for a range of Reynolds numbers about 10(6). The obtained numerical results revealed that the position of the head had a noticeable effect on the hydrodynamic performances, strongly modifying the wake around the swimmer. The analysis of these results made it possible to propose an optimal position of the head of a swimmer in underwater swimming.
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