The 100 metre breaststroke as run at a national school sports meet: two lengths of the pool in the most technical stroke, with a two-hand touch at the turn, won on the clock and lost easily on an illegal kick or touch.
The 100 metres breaststroke is two lengths of a 50 metre pool, or four lengths of a 25 metre pool, swum in breaststroke only. Breaststroke has the strictest technique rules of the four strokes: the arms move together and stay in front of the hips, the legs kick together in a whip or frog movement, and the swimmer follows a set rhythm of pull, breathe, kick and glide. The result is decided by the clock, but only for a swim that is legal from start to finish.
The turn is what makes this race different from the 50 metre sprint. At the end of the first length the swimmer must touch the wall with both hands at the same time, on the same level, before turning. A one-hand touch is the commonest reason for disqualification in this race. The same two-hand touch is needed at the finish, so a tired swimmer who reaches for the wall with one arm can lose a good time at the last stroke.
In this template the item is entered by individual swimmers in four fields: Junior boys and Junior girls (under 17) and Senior boys and Senior girls (under 19). A finishing time in minutes, seconds and hundredths is recorded. The template carries a nominal five-minute limit with a four-minute warning; those are placeholders for the scoring screen, since the race takes a fraction of that, and a coordinator can ignore or tighten them.
On the day an entry is one swimmer with a lane and a heat. A large field is swum in heats seeded by entry time and merged into one ranking per field; a small field can swim a single final. The organiser needs a starter, lane timekeepers or automatic timing, turn and stroke judges who watch the kick and the touches, and a results desk to merge and check the times. In this template a Gold finish carries 5 bonus points, Silver 3 and Bronze 1.
Where 100 meters Breaststroke comes from
Breaststroke is one of the oldest swimming styles and became a separate competitive stroke in the nineteenth century; the 100 metre distance is a standard short-course race for it.
Where 100 meters Breaststroke is run
In eTalenter the item is carried by the national school sports and games template for Indian school-board affiliates, in the swimming programme after the 100 metre freestyle and before the 100 metre backstroke. More widely, the 100 metre breaststroke is a standard event at school galas, club meets and national and international championships.
- India (national school sports meet for board-affiliated schools)
- Worldwide as a swimming event
Key facts
- Individual race, run separately for boys and girls
- Four fields: Junior (U-17) and Senior (U-19), each for boys and for girls
- Two lengths of a 50 metre pool with one turn; breaststroke only
- Two-hand simultaneous touch required at the turn and at the finish
- Result is a finishing time in minutes, seconds and hundredths of a second
- Medal points in this template: Gold 5, Silver 3, Bronze 1
On eTalenter, 100 meters Breaststroke is filed under Water Sports and typically scored with Time (MM:SS.ms). It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, 100 meters Breaststroke is most often entered as an Individual competition, commonly run for Female, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 5 minutes where a limit is set.
How it is scored
The scoring method the templates attach to this item, and what that scale means.
- Best score is
- the lowest
- Decimal places
- 2
- Unit
- seconds / milliseconds
- Used for
- Sports
Where it sits
The category this competition is filed under when a template is installed.
Others in this category: Swimming, Diving, Rowing, Canoeing, Kayaking, Water Polo, Surfing
Judging criteria installed for it
eTalenter matches an item to its criteria on the words in its name, and creates exactly these when the template is installed.
No criteria match this name, so none are created automatically — judges score it on the event’s own criteria instead.
What judges look at in 100 meters Breaststroke
What a 100 meters Breaststroke panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Finishing time: the fastest legal swim wins, so agree a tie-break rule for equal times before the day
- Two-hand touch: both hands must touch the wall together at the turn and at the finish, and a one-hand touch can mean disqualification
- Legal stroke: arms and legs must move together and symmetrically, with no flutter or dolphin kick, and the hands must not be pulled back past the hips
- Pacing: the second length decides the race, so a swimmer who is too fast in the first fifty and loses stroke length in the second drops places
- Start and accurate timing: leaving the block before the signal is a disqualification, and times from every heat must be recorded per lane and checked before ranks are published
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for 100 meters Breaststroke under Scoring Setup, or start from how judging, scoring and tabulation work on eTalenter.
How to prepare for 100 meters Breaststroke
How entrants and their teachers usually get 100 meters Breaststroke right on the day:
- Drill the two-hand touch until it is automatic, and practise it when tired, because that is when swimmers slip to one hand
- Practise the turn as a sequence: two-hand touch, quick tuck, push-off, streamline, then one underwater pull as the rules for the stroke allow
- Work on the kick with a board and with kick-pull drills; a narrow, powerful whip kick is faster and safer than a wide, late one
- Train 50 metre repeats at race pace with short rest to learn what an even 100 feels like, and finish sets with a hard last 25
- Teachers should ask a colleague to watch for illegal kicks and touches in practice, and time candidates over a full 100 metres including the turn
- Count strokes per length and hold the same stroke rate in the second length; if stroke length falls away, add kick and core work
- On race day warm up in the pool with a few starts and turns, and avoid a heavy meal in the final hour
Events that run this (1)
Ready-made templates that already include this competition. Installing one sets it up for you.
Frequently asked questions
Is 100 meters Breaststroke judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, commonly for Female, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Why do so many breaststroke swimmers get disqualified?
Because the stroke has strict rules. The usual causes are a one-hand touch at the turn or finish, a flutter or dolphin kick, and arms or legs moving unevenly.
Is the 100 metre breaststroke judged by a panel?
No. The result is a finishing time. Officials only check that the start, stroke, turn and finish are legal.
Is the 100 metre breaststroke just two 50 metre races?
No. It is one continuous race with a turn at the wall, so the touch, push-off and pacing matter as well as speed.
Who can enter the 100 metre breaststroke in this template?
Individual swimmers in Junior (under 17) and Senior (under 19) fields, with separate races for boys and girls.
Similar competitions
Items whose names share a word with this one — usually the same discipline in another form.
Want the full judging picture? Read how judging, scoring and tabulation work on eTalenter, or browse every water sports competition item.
Try 100 meters Breaststroke in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs 100 meters Breaststroke, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
