Objective: To explore whether the medalists in 1500m freestyle swimming choose different pacing strategies from their competitors in order to determine the most effective pacing strategies characteristics to obtain victory in swimming. Methods: The 1500m freestyle finalists in World Swimming Championships from 2003 to 2023 as candidates of this study. In total, data of 175 swimming performances (87 male and 88 female) were extracted according to their final ranking. With the split time, cumulative time and position were calculated across the race. The difference of the main indicators in pacing strategies between medalists and their competitors was compared, and the above variables were selected for One-Way ANOVA statistical analysis. Results: 1) The medalists had a significant speed advantage regardless of split time in the race, as well as the velocity of the starting stage, intermediate swim and end spurt (p<0.01or p<0.001). 2) After the normalization of the cumulative time, the difference between the medalists and 4th -8th athletes in the percentage of split time and normalized velocity is mainly reflected in the last 400m or so of the first and second half (p<0.05). 3) Regardless of whether they won medals or not, the pacing strategies of male freestyle swimmers were mostly reverse J and U-shaped, while that of female were mainly reverse J-shaped (90.9%). 4) DSI and ESI of medalists were higher, but the ESI was significantly different from that of 4th-8th athletes (p<0.05). Meanwhile, the coefficient of variation and the median and quartile of the density distribution of CV were significantly lower in intermediate stage. Conclusion: All 1500m freestyle finalists follow a similar parabolic pacing strategies regardless of gender and final race position. Compared with their competitors, the medalists chose a relatively conservative starting strategy, a more even pace through the middle section of the race and a strong end-spurt. In summary, the reverse J shaped is an effective pacing strategies for elite freestyle athletes to success in 1500m swimming competitions.