On September 28, 2026, the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Rules Committee issued a rule update, effective immediately, to ensure consistency with recent actions by World Aquatics and USA Swimming. This change to Breaststroke Rule 2-2-2-b was incorporated into a revised digital version of the NCAA Swimming and Diving Rules Book that was released on October 1, 2026.
This rule change is significant in that during the Breaststroke turn, swimmers may now leave the wall on the back provided the body is on the breast before any kick or stroke after leaving the wall.
Here is revised Rule 2-2-2-b as presented in the NCAA communication.
“Breaststroke: The body shall be kept on the breast. It is not permitted to roll onto the back at any time except at the turn after the touch of the wall where it is permissible to turn in any manner as long as the body is on the breast before any kick or stroke after leaving the wall. Throughout the race the stroke cycle must be one stroke and one kick in that order. All movements of the arms shall be simultaneous without alternating movement. The hands shall be pushed forward together from the breast on, under, or over the water. The elbows shall be under water except for the final stroke before the turn, during the turn and for the final stroke at the finish. The hands shall be brought back on or under the surface of the water. The hands shall not be brought back beyond the hip line, except during the first stroke after the start and each turn. During each complete cycle, some part of the swimmer’s head shall break the surface of the water. After the start and after each turn, the swimmer may take one stroke completely back to the legs. The head must break the surface of the water before the hands turn inward at the widest part of the second stroke.”
The revisions to the first two sentences of Rule 2-2-2-b are significant technical Breaststroke changes. A few other sentences contain changes that are editorial in nature, such as changing “arm stroke’ to “stroke” and “leg kick” to “kick.”
While evaluating this issue, CSOA Officers discovered that the August 15, 2026 digital Rule Book update included an unmarked and unannounced technical change to Individual Medley Rule 2-2-5-d-2, which is also included in the
October 1, 2026 digital rule book. This change along with the above Breaststroke change allow the IM swimmer to leave the wall on the back when transitioning from Backstroke to Breaststroke.
SUMMARY
1. MOVING FORWARD, BREASTSTROKERS ARE NO LONGER REQUIRED TO BE ON THE BREAST AFTER LEAVING THE WALL. THE BODY MUST BE ON THE BREAST BEFORE ANY KICK OR STROKE AFTER LEAVING THE WALL.
2. Ensure you are using the most recent NCAA Swimming and Diving Rule Book, updated on October 1, 2026. Here is the link:
https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/championships/sports/swimdive/rules/PRXSW_RulesBook.pdf