In response to hartley and hartley: Cross-sectional age trends in swimming records; decline is greater at the longer distances

Abstract

Data by Hartley and Hartley [2] on cross-sectional age trends in swimming performances were reanalyzed. The dependent variable for the reanalysis was the natural logarithm of speed. A number of reasons were advanced for why the natural logarithm of speed or time is a more appropriate index of performance than either speed or time in designs where performance is to be related to age and event distance. Findings indicate that performance decline with age is greater for longer distance swims than for the sprints. This finding was true for both sexes and is consistent with earlier trends obtained from analysis of record running performances.