The Finish!

So there are two main ways of finishing. The main difference is where the eyes are looking when the fingers touch the wall. One is looking at the floor of the pool (to minimize drag) and the other is looking straight up at the sky (to try to gain an extra inch or two in length). They all share critical similarities. They include: finishing on your side, touching the wall with an extended arm, having the hand touch the wall underwater (no touching the top of the gutter), having your hand touch the wall without it going deeper than your shoulder, and not breathing, at the very least, on the last two strokes before touching the wall. After viewing the last Olympic games, we are going to go ahead and practice the finish where the eyes are looking down, since that is what the majority of the world's best swimmers, like Missy Franklin, are doing. Go ahead and look at the video below to see what it looks like.

Execute an Explosive Freestyle Finish!

Now go ahead and look at the the Olympic relay event here and look at where the eyes of Team USA and France are looking as they finish their race. Pay particular attention to the replay of the winning team at 8:02.
France Win Gold In 4x100m Freestyle Relay Final | London 2012 Olympics

Here is the other way of finishing, which we are going to stay away from until you can master the eyes down finish. The reason being is because too many swimmers lift the head up (where both ears come out the water), when they look to the sky, which lowers the hips, and causes drag right before you finish.

Lindsay Benko Freestyle Finish

 
Backstroke Finish

Learn How to Finish Your Backstroke!

How to Get DQ'd on a Backstroke Finish