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Prepared by Bradley Schumacher

About the author:
Bradley Schumacher, 1996 Olympic and 1998 World Championships relay gold medalist, is a member of both the U.S. national swimming and water polo teams

The flip turn is regarded by many people as the mark of a "real" swimmer, and it adds enjoyment and sense of accomplishment to your workouts.

Not only that, but the flip turn is a very important part of any race. Many races are won or lost during the flip turn. In order to have successful turns in a race, it is important to practice perfect turns in every training. Perfect practice means perfect performance. Some key aspects to think about when performing a flip turn are as follows:

  Accelerate into and out of the wall
  Maintain a tight streamlined position
  Never breathe into the wall or out of the wall on the first stroke.

	I'm approaching the wall at full speed I gauge my distance from the wall, using the "T" on the bottom of the pool. This allows me to stay in my efficient swimming position. I do not want to raise my head to find the wall because it would break my streamlined body position. I tuck my chin to my chest to begin the flip turn. I continue to kick into and through the turn so I do not lose any speed on my approach.
	I pull my knees toward my chest and begin the tumbling motion My hands are used to help to proper the tumbling motion and maintain my balance. It is important that your feet go directly over your head. You do not want to flip on your side. I am in a tight ball throughout the tumbling motion to be sure I can get my feet to the wall quickly. My legs are together and hit the wall at the same time.
	As I prepare to place my feet on the wall, I'm already moving my hands and arms toward the streamline position Timing is key here as you do not want to move your arms too early or too late
	My feet are placed on the wall together in an athletic jumping position I am on my back with my streamline in place as I prepare to launch off the wall. I will use the momentum I carried into the wall and the power of my legs to propel me off the wall on my back

After pushing off the wall, I begin to rotate onto my side The rotation should feel like a natural uncoiling of the body from back to side to stomach, though some coaches talk about using your feet as a rudder to steer yourself onto your stomach. Throughout these positions, I maintain a very tight streamlined position to reduce any drag

I'm now almost fully rotated onto my stomach and have started to add in my kick I have a tight streamline to reduce any drag. As I approach the surface of the water, I begin to think about the breakout. This portion of the turn is very important as many lose a lot of speed from breaking out too soon. I will pull with my bottom hand - the hand closest to the bottom of the pool. I move my arm through a normal pull and break the surface of the water partially on my side. It is important to maintain speed and not breathe on that first stroke.

Photos by: Michael Aron
Arranged by MGI Agency, Belgrade, Prepared by: Goran Rasula (September, 2001)