Ratio of female to male by age and distance.

BackgroundIn sports science, freestyle swimming has been thoroughly studied for particular performance-related factors. Nonetheless, it is unknown what countries the top freestyle swimmers are from, especially not for age group swimmers. In addition, the existing research on the performance of master freestyle swimmers has yet to confirm that male swimmers achieve faster times than their female counterparts across all age groups and distances. The current study looked into the nationalities and sexes of the top freestyle swimmers in each age group in World Aquatics competitions for the 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, and 800m events from 1986 to 2024.MethodsThe data (derived from (www.worldaquatics.com/masters/archives/masters-archives) were presented using mean, standard deviation, maximum and minimum values, and/or confidence intervals. The year of competition, age, age group, stroke, distance, and first and last names of each swimmer were noted. The nations were then divided into six groups: one group comprising all other countries and the top five nations with the greatest number of appearances in the top 10 fastest freestyle swimming times by distance each year.ResultsIn freestyle swimming, most swimmers (30.6%) competed in the 50m event (n = 25,094, 10,909 female and 14,185 male), followed by the 100m event (25.6%, n = 20,961, 8,796 female and 12,165 male), the 200m event (17.4%, n = 14,309, 6,729 female and 7,580 male), the 400m event (13.4%, n = 10,956, 5,363 female and 5,593 male), and the 800m event (12.6%, n = 10,317, 5,179 female and 5,138 male). The results from the generalized linear models indicate that sex, age group, and the interaction between sex and age group all had significant effects on the 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, and 800m races. Specifically, for the 50m races, the effect of sex was significant (x2 (1) = 3451.941, p 2 (13) = 19,295.169, p 2 (13) = 654.671, p ConclusionThe USA demonstrates quantitative dominance by contributing the greatest number of top 10 performers. Additionally, the study highlights significant sex-based performance differences, with males generally outperforming females in all age categories. This study comprehensively analyzes the performance trends observed in freestyle master swimming for nearly four decades.研究背景 在运动科学领域，自由泳的多项表现相关影响因素已得到充分研究。然而，目前尚不清楚顶尖自由泳运动员的所属国家，针对青少年年龄组运动员的相关研究更是鲜有覆盖。此外，现有关于大师组自由泳运动员表现的研究尚未证实：在所有年龄组别与泳距中，男性运动员的完赛时长均快于女性运动员。本研究针对1986年至2024年间世界泳联（World Aquatics）举办的赛事中，各年龄组别50米、100米、200米、400米及800米自由泳项目的顶尖选手，对其国籍与性别展开分析。 研究方法 本研究数据源自（www.worldaquatics.com/masters/archives/masters-archives），通过均值、标准差、最值及置信区间进行统计呈现。研究记录了赛事年份、运动员年龄、年龄组别、泳姿、泳距，以及每位选手的姓名。随后，按每年各泳距项目排名前10的最快完赛成绩的出现次数，将参赛国家划分为六组：其中前五名国家为一组，其余所有国家归为另一组。 研究结果 在自由泳赛事中，参赛选手占比最高的为50米项目（共25094人次，其中女性10909人次、男性14185人次，占比30.6%），其次为100米项目（20961人次，女性8796人次、男性12165人次，占比25.6%）、200米项目（14309人次，女性6729人次、男性7580人次，占比17.4%）、400米项目（10956人次，女性5363人次、男性5593人次，占比13.4%）与800米项目（10317人次，女性5179人次、男性5138人次，占比12.6%）。广义线性模型（Generalized Linear Model）结果显示，性别、年龄组别，以及性别与年龄组别的交互作用，对50米、100米、200米、400米及800米赛事均存在显著影响。具体而言，50米赛事中性别影响显著（χ²(1)=3451.941，p<0.001）；100米赛事中年龄组别影响显著（χ²(13)=19295.169，p<0.001）；性别与年龄组别的交互作用影响显著（χ²(13)=654.671，p<0.001）。 研究结论 美国在顶尖前十选手的数量上占据绝对优势，体现出量化层面的统治力。此外，本研究证实了性别间存在显著表现差异：在所有年龄组别中，男性选手的整体完赛表现均优于女性选手。本研究对近四十年来大师组自由泳赛事的表现趋势展开了全面分析。