Pacing strategy and athletic performance. That a relatively even pace is the best way to distribute an effort in events lasting more than a couple of minutes has been based on limited data that existed over 50 years ago.
Pacing is different for two forms of events.
In short duration events, those that are primarily anaerobically energized, it is best to go out fast and come home slower. Winners are usually differentiated on the latter part of the race in that a higher velocity can be maintained. Thus, for events in swimming, particularly 100 m and shorter, the performance should require setting a very fast pace and then seeing how well it can be maintained. This controlled all-out model predicts 500 and 1,000 m skating and 1,000 m cycling events quite well. This remaining presence of ATP argues against substrate depletion as a primary cause of the decrease in power output and hence, against the necessity for pacing.