The 100m backstroke is often described as a sprint, and while that is broadly true, it is a sprint with more tactical nuance than most swimmers realise. Go out too hard and you tie up badly over the final 25 metres, watching your lead evaporate exactly when you need to hold it. Get the pacing right and you finish with controlled speed, a clean second lap, and a time that reflects what you are actually capable of.
It is also an event with a unique technical challenge: unlike every other stroke, you cannot see where you are going. Spatial awareness, underwater execution, and flag-to-wall stroke counting all take on a level of importance in backstroke that simply does not exist in the other events. Getting those elements right is as important as raw speed, at every level from first gala through to Olympic final.
Here is how to race the 100m backstroke well, from beginner through to what Thomas Ceccon’s gold medal and South Africa’s own Pieter Coetze at Paris 2024 tell us about the event at the highest level.
What Makes the 100m Backstroke Unique
The 100m backstroke sits in a similar space to the 100m freestyle in terms of energy demands. It is a two-lap hybrid event requiring explosive power off the start, speed endurance to hold that pace over the second length, and enough technical control to maintain stroke efficiency when your body is under maximum pressure.
What sets it apart from the freestyle sprint is the navigation element. In backstroke you are racing blind. You know the pool is 25 metres long, you know the flags are at 5 metres, and you know how many strokes it takes you to get from the flags to the wall. The swimmers who have that number dialled in execute clean, fast turns every time. The swimmers who do not crash into the wall, take an extra half stroke, or back off before the turn out of caution. In a two-lap race, one sloppy turn can cost you a medal.
For Younger and Beginner Swimmers: Three Things Before You Think About Pacing
If you are new to competitive backstroke, the most important thing before worrying about race strategy is building three foundational habits that are specific to this stroke.
Know your flag count: Count exactly how many strokes it takes you to get from the backstroke flags to the wall. Do this at the start of every training session, from both a rested state and a fatigued one, because the number can change slightly when you are tired. Knowing this number removes the guesswork from your turns and lets you swim all the way to the wall with confidence rather than pulling up short.
Keep your head still: The most common technical fault in age group backstroke is head movement. Swimmers who tilt their head to look for the wall, or who shift their gaze during the race, disrupt their body position and create drag. Trust your flags, trust your stroke count, and keep your head neutral and still throughout the race.
Rotate through your hips: Good backstroke is driven by hip rotation, not just arm movement. Your body should roll from side to side as you stroke, using your core and hips to generate power and length through each pull. Swimmers who lie flat and churn their arms are working far harder than swimmers who rotate well. If your coach is cueing rotation, it is not just a technique note. It is a speed note.
On pacing for beginners: the same principle applies as in the 100m freestyle. Your first 50 metres should be controlled and strong, not flat out. If you are sprinting at 100 percent from the moment you hit the water, you will tie up before the turn. Think of your first length as 90 percent effort, saving just enough to hold your form and your speed on the way back.
The Underwater Off the Start and Turn: Your Fastest Speed in the Race
In backstroke, the underwater dolphin kicks off the start and the turn are the fastest phases of the entire race. You are carrying the momentum of your dive or your push, your body is in a hydrodynamic streamline, and you are moving faster than you will at any point during your above-water swimming.
The rules allow up to 15 metres of underwater backstroke kick off the start and each turn. Most age group swimmers surface well before this. Most elite swimmers get as close to 15 metres as physically possible. Every metre you can add to your underwater is free speed, and free speed is the most valuable commodity in a 100m sprint.
A word of caution that applies at every level: the 15 metre limit is actively enforced by referees at galas, and swimmers who exceed it are disqualified. In training, know exactly where 15 metres is in your pool and stay just inside it. You want to be as close to that limit as possible without going over.
For age group swimmers, a target of 8 to 10 metres off each wall is a reasonable starting point. For competitive club swimmers, 11 to 13 metres is the target range. Elite swimmers aim to hit as close to 15 metres as possible on every single underwater of the race.
Stroke Count: Your Navigation Tool and Your Efficiency Tracker
In the 100m backstroke, your stroke count matters in two distinct ways.
The first is navigation. As mentioned, knowing your flag-to-wall stroke count is fundamental to turning well. This is a number worth tracking in training at different points of fatigue, because it can shift by one or two strokes when you are tired and your stroke shortens slightly. Knowing this in advance means you can adapt mid-race rather than being caught out.
The second is efficiency. Your full-length stroke count tells you how much work your technique is doing for you. A lower count generally means you are getting more distance per stroke, which means your body rotation and pull mechanics are working efficiently. A rising count on the second length compared to the first is a clear signal that your technique is breaking down under fatigue, which is both a race day observation and a training target.
Benchmark stroke counts for a 25 metre pool by level:
- Beginner age group: 22 to 28 strokes per length. Focus on rotation and a longer pull to bring this down over time.
- Developing club swimmer: 18 to 22 strokes per length. A strong underwater and good hip rotation should be getting you here.
- Competitive club to national level: 15 to 18 strokes per length, with the second length ideally within two strokes of the first.
Pacing the 100m Backstroke: The Split Strategy
Like the 100m freestyle and 100m breaststroke, the 100m backstroke is almost always swum as a positive split. The first 50 metres is faster than the second 50 metres. The goal is to keep that differential as small as possible while still going out with enough aggression to be in the race.
At elite international level, the split differential in the men’s 100m backstroke typically sits between 1.5 and 3 seconds. At club level, here is a useful target range:
- Beginner to age group: A 4 to 6 second differential between first and second 50m is typical. Work on closing this gap through consistent training.
- Developing club swimmer: Aim to get your differential under 4 seconds. This is where your underwater and stroke efficiency start to make a real difference.
- Competitive club to national level: A 2 to 3 second differential is the target. Below 2 seconds is approaching elite territory.
One practical pacing cue that works well for backstroke specifically: focus on your kick rate on the second length. When backstroke swimmers tire, their kick is usually the first thing to drop off. A conscious effort to maintain your kick tempo through the final 25 metres will help hold your stroke rate and your body position even when your arms are getting heavy.
What Thomas Ceccon’s Gold and Pieter Coetze’s African Record Tell Us
The men’s 100m backstroke final at Paris 2024 was one of the more straightforward results of the Games, but it contained some genuinely interesting performance data worth unpacking.
Italy’s Thomas Ceccon won gold in 52.00 seconds, ahead of China’s Xu Jiayu in silver and Ryan Murphy of the United States in bronze. Ceccon is the world record holder in the event, having set a mark of 51.60 at the 2022 World Championships that still stands, and his Olympic victory confirmed his status as the dominant force in the event globally.
What is instructive about Ceccon’s race from a pacing perspective is how controlled his opening 50 metres was relative to his finishing speed. He did not try to build an overwhelming lead on the first length. He swam a technically clean first 50, used a strong underwater off the turn, and then produced a faster second 25 metres than almost anyone else in the field. His stroke rate remained remarkably consistent across both lengths, which is a hallmark of elite backstroke swimming and a direct result of exceptional technique and race management.
The South African story from this final is one worth celebrating at home. Pieter Coetze broke the African record twice in Paris, once in his semifinal and again in the final. He did not medal, but breaking a continental record twice in one competition at an Olympic Games is a significant achievement and a signal of just how much South African backstroke has developed. For Cape Town swimmers and their parents, Coetze is proof that the pathway from South African club swimming to the Olympic final is a real one.
On the women’s side, Kaylee McKeown of Australia produced one of the great individual performances of the Paris Games. Smith and Masse led at the halfway point, but McKeown came back to win gold with a new Olympic record of 57.33, with Regan Smith taking silver and Katharine Berkoff bronze. McKeown’s race is a textbook example of the patient, progressive backstroke approach that we discussed in the 200m post. She was not leading at the turn, but she was in position to strike, and her back half was the fastest in the field.
The Turn: Where the 100m Backstroke Is Won or Lost
In a two-lap race with one turn, that single turn carries enormous weight. A difference of half a second between a good turn and a poor one is the difference between a personal best and a disappointing swim at club level. At elite level it is the difference between a medal and a final.
The backstroke turn has three phases that all need to work together:
The approach: Knowing your flag count, committing to it, and rotating onto your front to initiate the flip turn without hesitation. Swimmers who look for the wall or pull up short before rotating lose momentum they cannot get back.
The flip and push: A tight, fast rotation and a powerful push off the wall. The push needs to drive you into streamline, not upward or downward. An angled push bleeds the speed that the flip generates.
The underwater: As discussed, getting as close to 15 metres as possible off the turn is the single highest-value skill in the 100m backstroke. A strong underwater after a good turn carries you through the most efficient phase of the entire second length before you even start swimming.
In training, turn work should never just happen as part of a full-length set. It should be drilled specifically, under fatigue, and with feedback. A swimmer who can execute a great turn when they are tired has done the work. A swimmer who only turns well when they are fresh has not.
How to Train for a Better 100m Backstroke
A few specific training approaches worth building into your programme:
- Underwater sets: 10 x pushoff and streamlined backstroke kick targeting maximum distance. Track the distance and aim for consistency across all ten reps. Your tenth should travel as far as your first.
- Flag-to-wall practice: Swim 8 x 25m backstroke where the only focus is executing a perfect turn entry. Count your strokes from the flags to the wall on every rep and keep the number identical across all eight.
- Broken 100s: Swim 75m at full race effort, rest 10 seconds at the wall, then race the final 25m. This isolates the final phase of the race and trains your body to produce fast swimming when it is already depleted.
- Stroke count sets: 6 x 50m backstroke, recording your stroke count on every length. The goal is to keep your count on rep 6 within two strokes of rep 1.
- Kick sets: Backstroke kick on your back, arms at your sides or extended, focusing on a continuous compact kick rather than a wide, slow one. Your kick is the engine that holds your body position and your stroke rate together when fatigue sets in on the second length.
A Final Note on Confidence
The 100m backstroke rewards confident racing more than almost any other event. Swimmers who hesitate going into the turn, who back off in the final 10 metres because they are not sure where the wall is, or who swim the first length tentatively because they are worried about the second, consistently underperform relative to their training.
The preparation is what builds that confidence. Know your flag count. Trust your underwaters. Commit to your turns. Race the event in training regularly enough that the race day version feels familiar rather than frightening.
At Vineyard Swimming we build backstroke-specific skills from the earliest age group stages in Cape Town, because the habits you develop in your first seasons of competitive swimming are the ones that carry through to senior level. If you want to know more about how we approach backstroke development, get in touch at Duncan@VineyardSwimming.co.za.
About Duncan Bonney
Duncan Bonney is an ASCA Level 4 and Swim SA Level 2 certified swim coach based in Cape Town, with over 10 years of experience coaching swimmers from beginner level through to SA Nationals. He manages Vineyard Swimming and has helped multiple athletes secure overseas university swimming scholarships. Read more about Duncan Bonney, connect on LinkedIn, or follow on X.
