Swimming involves propelling oneself through water using only the limbs. Ancient civilizations used swimming for essential activities such as transportation and survival. Over the millennia, swimming has become a popular recreational and competitive sport. Swimmers developed various strokes to propel their bodies through water, including breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle. Swimming improves health by enhancing cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, and strength.

Early cave paintings from Egypt and Greece provide pictorial evidence of swimming dating to the Stone Age. Other archaeological evidence shows swimming in Asia, Assyria, and Rome. In some parts of the Pacific, children learned to swim before they could walk. In Ancient Greece, cities developed public baths with pools for swimming. Ancient Rome also created swimming pools, including heated pools. 

Ancient Greece included swimming as an event in the Olympic Games. Japan also conducted swimming races as early as the first century BCE. 

In the modern era, people began to swim competitively in the 19th century. London established its first swimming club in 1828, and by 1844 swimmers began to form swimming associations in England. During that century, swimming also began popular in North America. Swimmers in New York City competed in the first national swimming championship in 1873.

Competitive swimming spans a range of activities taking place in a pool or open water. Swimmers often compete as youth and progress to an elite level. Some of the most well-known professional swimming events include the Olympic Games, the Youth Olympic Games, and the World Beach Games. Various regional events include the African Games, the Asian Games, the Australian Youth Olympic Festival, the European Games, the Indian Ocean Island Games, and the Pan Arab Games. Other important international swimming federation events include the World Aquatics Championships, the World Swimming Championships, the World Junior Swimming Championships, the Swimming World Cup, and various open-water swimming events. 

Athletes have competed in swimming at the Olympics since the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896. Swimming was one of the nine original sports. It included four events, all open water races in the Mediterranean Sea. By the 1908 London Olympics, swimming races were held in pools. Although some early Olympic swimming races allowed men and women to compete together, the Olympic Committee added races exclusively for women for the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. Some other changes to Olympic swimming include the addition of starting blocks in the 1936 Olympics and the addition of goggles in the 1976 Olympics. 

Fast forward to the 2012 London Olympics, where swimmers from 166 countries competed inside the London Aquatics Centre. In the twenty-first century, Olympic swimmers compete in individual races held in the four strokes plus a combined stroke event called the individual medley. In 2000, the Olympic Committee reintroduced open-water swimming events.

What is the Value of your Swimming collectibles? V​iew more in our Swimming Price Guide.

Swimming memorabilia include apparel, art, autographed gear, ephemera, jewelry, medals, photographs,trophies, and other collectibles. Some of the most successful swimmers generate a strong collector’s market. Names to look for include American swimmer Michael Phelps, who swam in four Olympics and won twenty-eight medals; American Mark Spitz, who won seven gold medals at a single Olympics in 1972; and Australian Ian Thorpe, who swam in three Olympics and won five gold medals. Some female Olympic swimmers to look out for include Americans Katie Ledecky and Dara Torres. 

Find the Value of your Swimming collectibles. WorthPoint is the largest resource online for identifying, researching and valuing antiques. Explore over 425 Million “sold for” prices with item details and images.

Some swimming memorabilia may be identified by graphics or logos. Changes in the logos of these organizations over time may assist in dating objects. Some equipment is also marked with the name of the manufacturer. A trustworthy, detailed provenance is often the best method of authentication. 

Identify your Swimming Symbols.

In the WorthPoint Library

Catalogue of Fine Athletic Goods by Wright & Ditson.

Wilson’s Summer Sports Catalogue No. 91 by Harold A. Wilson Company, Ltd.  

Books and Periodicals

Splash! 10,000 Years of Swimming by Howard Means. 

Strokes of Genius: A History of Swimming by Eric Chaline.

Web Resources

An introduction to swimming at the Olympics www.swimming.org.

From Past to Present: The Evolution and History Of Olympic Swimming www.swimmingworldmagazine.com.

The history of Olympic swimming www.olympics.com.