Other forms: freestyles
In sports, a freestyle race allows the athlete to choose between different methods of competing. Swimmers can use any stroke in a freestyle event (though they almost always choose the front crawl).
In swimming, freestyle is synonymous with the crawl — but that's only because most swimmers choose to swim this fast stroke in freestyle races. Officially, freestyle offers a choice between crawl, breaststroke, butterfly, or backstroke. Sports that allow for creativity are often described as freestyle, too, like freestyle BMX events and freestyle skiing, both of which involve jumps and tricks. Freestyle was coined from the idea that athletes are free to choose the style they prefer.