Determinants of 50 m Front Crawl Performance in Adolescent Non-Elite Female Swimmers: A Longitudinal Study

Objectives: The aim of this study was to indicate which variables are the most important determinants of swimming results in the 50 m front crawl among non-elite pre-pubertal female swimmers. Methods: The study group consisted of 14 female swimmers (at the time of the research commencement-biological age: 10.52 ± 0.37 years; body mass: 34.99 ± 2.77 kg; height: 146.00 ± 3.05 cm). The study was conducted over three years. The swimmers performed capacity training recommended by the British Swimming Federation. Every 6 months, in the participants the following parameters were measured: percentage of body fat; anthropometric measurements; aerobic and anaerobic capacity; and respiratory parameters: vital capacity-VC, forced expiratory volume-FEV1, and forced vital capacity-FVC. Additionally, a 50 m front crawl swim test was performed. Results: After adjusting for multicollinearity, the most influential determinants of swimming performance were anthropometric measures: shoulder width was the most influential predictor, with a regression coefficient of -0.66, followed by foot length (with a beta of -0.15) and chest depth (with a beta of 0.008). The remaining anthropometric and physical predictors did not contribute to the prediction of 50 m freestyle performance. Conclusions: These research results suggest to coaches and trainers that sports performance in sprint distances in pre-pubertal girls is not determined by aerobic and anaerobic capacity or body fat but is based on the somatic build of the swimmer.