History
Butterfly was developed in the 1930s as a form of breaststroke. At the beginning it was swam during breaststroke events because it wasn’t an established stroke yet. The difference between this stroke and the typical breaststroke stroke was the introduction of an overarm recovery. Butterfly looks different now than it did in the in the 1930s because it is now swam with a dolphin kick (which was developed by David Armbruster) instead of a breaststroke kick. After this kick was discovered the new category for butterfly was created.
Original Butterfly (with breaststroke kick)
The new stroke was first contested at the Olympics in 1956 with the Men’s 200m butterfly and the Women’s 100m butterfly. Then in 1968 the Men’s 100m butterfly and Women’s 200m butterfly were first contested.
Modern Butterfly
Ever since 1968 both the women’s and men’s 100m and 200m butterfly have been contested at every major international competition, including the World Championships and Olympic Games. Butterfly is constructed of a double arm over the water recovery and a dolphin kick. It is considered one of the hardest strokes to swim due to the timing that is required to perfect the stroke.
How to Swim Butterfly:
Famous Butter-flyers
