The series of the International Symposium on Biomechanics and Medicine in Swimming (BMS) has long been recognised as the leading international forum dedicated to the scientific study of human movement in aquatic environments. Since the inaugural symposium held in Brussels in 1970 under the leadership of Léon Lewillie and Jan P. Clarys, the BMS series has provided a unique platform for the dissemination of research spanning biomechanics, physiology, medicine, coaching science, motor learning, engineering, and, more recently, computational sciences and aquatic health. Over more than five decades, the symposium has accompanied, and frequently anticipated, the major scientific developments that have shaped contemporary aquatic research. Throughout its history, the BMS symposium has mirrored the evolution of swimming science itself. Indeed, it was the main catalyst of this evolution. The earliest meetings were primarily devoted to understanding the mechanical and phys-iological determinants of swimming performance. Fundamental investigations into propulsion, hydrodynamic resistance, energy expenditure, and stroke mechanics established the scientific foundations upon which modern swimming biome-chanics was built. The pioneering work of researchers such as Lewillie, Clarys, Cureton, Cousilman, Astrand, Holmér, Miyashita, Schleihauf, Hay, Morehouse, Costill, Reilly, Persyn, Daly, Hollander, Toussaint, Mason, Chollet, di Prampero, Pendergast, Nomura, Ungerechts, and many other contributors transformed the analysis of swimming from predomi-nantly descriptive observations into a rigorous experimental discipline supported by quantitative measurement and bio-mechanical modelling.
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