How do I convert pace per 100m to pace per 100yd?

One yard is 0.9144 metres, so 100 yards is 91.44 metres. To go from pace per 100m to pace per 100yd, multiply by 0.9144. To go the other way, from per 100yd to per 100m, multiply by 1.0936. This converter does it both ways and also gives you 50m and 25m splits.

How much slower is open water than the pool?

Most swimmers are somewhere between 5 and 15 percent slower in open water for the same effort. You lose the push-off at every wall, you have to lift your head to sight, and chop, current and cold all add up. A wetsuit gives some of that back through extra buoyancy, so a strong open water swimmer in calm conditions can be close to their pool pace. Treat the open water figure here as an estimate, not a promise.

What are the standard triathlon swim distances?

A sprint triathlon swim is usually 750m, an Olympic distance swim is 1500m, a middle distance or 70.3 swim is 1900m, and a full Ironman distance swim is 3800m. This tool gives your estimated time for each at both your pool pace and your open water pace.

Swim pace converter

Enter one pace and get it back in every unit that matters: per 100m, per 100yd, per 50m and per length, plus an open water estimate and your swim time for each triathlon distance.

My pace

min / sec

Measured per

The distance your pace is for

Open water conditions

Sets how much the open water estimate slows you down

Unit conversions are exact (100yd = 91.44m). The open water column is an estimate based on the conditions you chose, so use it as a ballpark rather than a target.

How the conversion works

Metres and yards are close but not the same. One yard is 0.9144 metres, so 100 yards is 91.44 metres, a bit under a full pool length in a 50m pool and a bit over a length in a 25yd pool. That small gap is why a pace that looks quick in yards is a touch slower once you put it into metres.

Per 100m to per 100yd: multiply your time by 0.9144.
Per 100yd to per 100m: multiply your time by 1.0936.
50m and 25m splits: simply half and quarter of your 100m pace, which is the number most pool clocks and sets are built around.

Why open water is slower

Take the same effort out of the pool and most swimmers lose time. There are no walls to push off, so you give up a small boost every 25 or 50 metres. You lift your head to sight the buoys, which breaks your body position. Then chop, current, cold and swimming a slightly longer line than the course all chip away at your pace. A wetsuit hands some of it back through buoyancy, which is why a confident open water swimmer in flat conditions can land close to their pool pace while a nervous one in a choppy sea loses far more.

The estimate here uses a single adjustment for the conditions you pick. It cannot know your sighting, your wetsuit or the sea state on the day, so treat it as a starting point and learn your own real gap from a few open water swims.

Triathlon swim distances

The distance table gives your time at the four standard triathlon swims, worked out at both your pool pace and your chosen open water pace.

Race	Swim distance
Sprint	750m
Olympic	1500m
Middle / 70.3	1900m
Full / Ironman	3800m

FAQs

Which pool length does this assume?

None of the split maths depends on pool length. Your per 100m pace stays the same whether you swim it as two lengths of a 50m pool or four of a 25m pool. Wall push-offs mean you will usually clock a slightly faster 100m in a short-course pool, but that is a difference in your swimming, not in the conversion.

Can I work backwards from a race time?

Yes. Divide your total swim time by the distance in hundreds to get your pace. A 30 minute 1500m is 1800 seconds over 15 hundreds, which is 120 seconds, or 2:00 per 100m. Pop that into the converter to see it in yards and to plan your splits.

Is my open water pace really that much slower?

It varies more than any other number on this page. Beginners in open water often lose 15 percent or more to sighting and nerves, while seasoned swimmers in a buoyant wetsuit and calm water barely lose anything. The only way to know your own figure is to swim a measured open water loop and compare it to your pool pace.

Planning an open water swim?

Work out what to wear with the wetsuit thickness guide, find your size across every brand with the wetsuit size finder, and set your training paces with the CSS calculator.