Swimming betting is a common practice because there are various types of betting options and the sport is popular with many people watching around the world. Therefore, bettors can make a bit of extra money through bets, especially during tournaments like the Olympic games. If you want to get into swimming betting, you’ll need to know a few things, like betting tips, betting markets, and a bit about the sport. So, read on to learn more because this article covers these aspects.
Understanding Swimming As a Sport
Swimming is a sport in which individual players or teams race each other in a swimming pool or open water source. The swimmers usually have to do a specific type of stroke, a combination of multiple strokes, or any the swimmer prefers. Some strokes in the Olympic games include the following.
- Freestyle, which is when the swimmer has the choice to do any type of stroke they prefer—however, the front crawl is the most common choice among swimmers.
- Medley is a race in which the swimmers must incorporate a combination of 4 different strokes, the front crawl, butterfly stroke, backstroke, and breaststroke.
- Butterfly stroke, which is a physically challenging movement to do due to the simultaneous dolphin kick swimmers must do while swinging their arms forward.
- Backstroke, which is a movement that swimmers must do with their faces facing upwards instead of forward, resulting in their chest at the surface of the water.
- Breaststroke, which is a slow and technical movement, resulting in slower times to cover the same distance than when doing a simpler stroke like the front crawl.
Swimmers must cover different distances for each race to compete for the winning position in a race. For example, the freestyle race may include distances such as 50m, 200m, and even up to 1500m. On the other hand, the other specific stroke races are typically limited to 100m and 200m.
The Olympic games also include relay races, in which swimmers race in teams. Thus, individual swimmers must complete specific distances in the race and then allow their teammates to continue the race.
Moreover, there are about 8 to 10 swimmers in each race, and each one has their own lane within the swimming pool. That way, they don’t get in the way of other racers.
Top Swimming Teams and Players
You should note that there are players who excel at short courses while others at long courses. That said, we have the top swimmers in general in no particular order.
Men Swimmers
- Noe Ponti from Switzerland
- Florian Wellbrock from Germany
- Caeleb Dressel from the United States
Women Swimmers
- Katie Ledecky from the United States
- Ruta Meilutyte from Lithuania
- Summer Mcintosh from Canada
Best Teams
Some of the best teams for mixed freestyle races include the following.
- The United States
- The Russian Federation
- Netherlands
Popular Swimming Tournaments
Three of the most popular swimming tournaments are listed below. All of them also have various betting markets on various online sportsbooks (betting websites).
- FINA World Championships
- Olympic Games
- European Aquatics Championships
FINA is the Federation Internationale de Natation, which is an international governing organization for aquatic sports.
Swimming Betting Markets
Betting websites offer various swimming betting markets, which are categories of bets. You should know about some of the popular ones so that you can participate in those markets with relative ease.
Outright Winner of a Race
This category may be divided into further subcategories, such as the winning individual player or the winning team (in a team race). Moreover, there may also be different categories for men and women.
This category is arguably the most popular because there are not many betting markets for swimming. The reason is that the winner is based on the one who completes the race the fastest—in the Olympics, for example. Thus, other factors, such as the grace of how they perform their strokes, are irrelevant.
Some races may include swimmers that are not evenly matched. Thus, people may never choose to bet on the underdogs unless the returns are worth it. So, sportsbooks may set the swimming betting odds in a way that you get lower payouts when betting on the favorite and more for the underdog. It’s a method to help bettors to vary their betting options to play around with risk and reward.
Outright Winner of a Tournament
This category is a relatively high-risk one because you have to ensure a specific swimmer wins multiple races to win the title for the tournament. However, sportsbooks make it an attractive option for bettors by keeping the rewards high to match the risk.
Swimmer with the Most Gold Medals
In the case of the Olympics, sportsbooks may also offer users the opportunity to bet on the swimmer with the most gold medals. In that case, you may want to bet on a swimmer that’s a well-rounded player who can perform well at different strokes of the race.
Fastest Lap
This category does not consider the winner of a race but focuses on the swimmer who did the quickest lap in a race. Swimmers competing in the Olympics, for example, complete one lap when they go from one end of the pool to the other. You may also find bets on which swimmer will do the fastest lap within their team or the quickest lap time in the entire tournament. The betting markets vary from one sportsbook to the other.
Prop Bets
Prop bets are an exciting form of betting because they venture beyond the winners of a race. For example, a sportsbook may have prop bets for the total number of medals a specific swimming team wins during the entire competition.
Swimming Betting Tips
New bettors can benefit from the following swimming betting tips because they highlight important things to keep in mind with making sound bets.
Familiarize Yourself with the Sport and the Players
We included essential information about this sport in this article because it will help you understand different betting categories. Thus, when you navigate through a betting website, you’ll have an idea of how to bet on the sport.
Increasing your education on the sport, such as following what’s happening when placing your bets, can help you predict winners. You’ll know which players are performing and what teams have a good chance of winning. You can also learn which players excel at specific swimming strokes and races. Thus, you won’t base your bet on who’s good at swimming in general but on who’s good at a specific race. So, make it a point to stay invested in what’s happening in this sport, especially if you plan to bet on it more than once.
Do Not Overcomplicate Your Bets, and Keep the Stakes Low
When you’re new to betting, keep things as simple as possible. Pick a betting market (category) with relatively lower risk than others. For example, you could place a bet on whether a player will be a part of the podium. Or you could choose the outright winner of a race instead of the entire tournament. After researching the game and its players, you’ll most likely have narrowed down which players will most likely win. The betting categories mentioned above also don’t have many variables, so you don’t need to do much research to make your bets.
Lower risk means that you have a reduced chance of losing money. At the same time, you should also consider keeping your stakes (i.e., the money you place on your bet) relatively low. This way, you won’t lose much money if you lose the bet.
Do Not Let One Instance Influence All of Your Betting Decisions
You must accept that betting is always something that can go unfavorably, even when you do all your homework. This tip is significant for new bettors with little to no betting experience. Therefore, don’t let one loss discourage you from betting again. Instead, take a moment to analyze what you could have done in terms of research to prevent an unfavorable outcome. If there’s nothing, then simply move on and focus on your next bet. That is also why it’s a good idea to keep your stakes low so that you don’t lose much money as you learn from experience. Your experience will also be a crucial factor in making bets in the future.
You should also avoid getting cocky with winning one or two bets in a streak. Overconfidence may result in increasing the stakes, which, if lost, means you’ll lose a lot of money and ruin your betting experience. When you’re new to betting, place bets with the intention of learning instead of earning right away.
Answers to Questions You May Have about Betting on Swimming Competitions
We have compiled a list of answers to questions about betting on swimming competitions that you want to know more about.
Do people bet on swimming in the Olympics?
Yes, Olympic swimming betting is popular compared to other Olympic sports betting. One of the reasons is that determining the winning swimmer or team is relatively more straightforward than in other point-system games. The other reason is that it’s one of the most-watched sports in the Olympic games.
Where should I place my online bets on swimming?
There are multiple swimming betting websites, but we choose the following because of a few important reasons. Thus, they are reliable and offer a range of betting markets to make it interesting for bettors. Moreover, you have multiple options for placing money on the website for your wagers, and they have consistently great customer service.
- BetUS
- BetOnline
- Bovada
Is NCAA swimming betting possible?
NCAA swimming betting is prohibited in the United States. The NCAA is a nonprofit organization whose letters stand for National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Is there swimming world championships betting?
Yes, swimming world championships betting is popular because people from around the world watch the FINA championships. You’re likely to find great betting opportunities for this competition.
Last Few Words
Whenever you’re considering swimming betting, make it a point to research the betting website. Online sportsbooks often have some general sports betting rules that users must follow. Knowing these rules allow you to know how to go about making your bets, and you can bet without worry.