How long is an Olympic swimming pool?
An Olympic swimming pool is 50 meters long and 25 meters wide, with 10 lanes. It holds about 2.5 million liters of water when it is 2 meters deep.
The rules for Olympic and world championship pools are set by World Aquatics, formerly called FINA. Races use eight lanes, each 2.5 meters wide, with an empty lane on each side to reduce waves. The minimum depth is 2 meters, and 3 meters is recommended because deeper water creates less turbulence and allows faster swimming.
Water temperature must be kept between 25 and 28 degrees Celsius. Lane ropes are designed to absorb waves, and touch pads at each end record times to one hundredth of a second. The Olympic pool length of 50 meters is called long course, while 25-meter pools are known as short course.
How much water?
With a depth of 2 meters, an Olympic pool holds 2,500 cubic meters, or 2.5 million liters, of water. This volume is often used as a unit of measurement, for example to describe how much water a reservoir holds or how much oil was spilled.
Did You Know?
Swimming was part of the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, but races were held in the open sea in cold water, not in a pool.