For swimmers, new suit a stroke of genius

Tag : Woven Spandex

Though the Japanese federation has contracts with three othersuppliers, it's allowing swimmers to switch to Speedo after 16domestic records were broken this month at the Japan Open. TheGerman swimmers were so concerned that they would be also-rans atOlympus that adidas quickly developed a new design for them.
And while Nike is confident that its swimmers will be competitivein the Swift Amp'd, the company gave its six contract swimmers thefreedom to use other suits at the trials, where only the top two ineach event qualify for the Olympics.
"Obviously, Nike saw something I didn't," said Hansen, who sayshe's not sure whether he'll use the LZR this week. "If they feelyou're not in the right product, they'll put you in the rightproduct and worry about it later."
Speedo's other rivals aren't as lenient. TYR wants its swimmersusing the Tracer Rise bodysuit and sued distance specialist ErikVendt, a two-time Olympic medalist, when he switched to the LZRworn by his Club Wolverine teammates.
"Our contract athletes are expected to swim in TYR," saidspokeswoman Kim Fabian, whose company has arrangements withsprinter Amanda Weir, butterflyer Mary Descenza, and breaststrokerEric Shanteau, among others.
When Schubert advised swimmers to switch to Speedo at the trials"or they may end up watching at home on NBC," TYR sued him,Speedo's parent company, and USA Swimming for falsely disparagingother companies' products.
Though the LZR Racer clearly is the Olympiad's hottest suit, as theFSII was in 2004, it's not a magic costume. "The suit doesn'tnecessarily do the work for you," said Ian Crocker, the worldrecord-holder in the 100-meter butterfly, who wears an LZR.
But it's already helped transform above-average swimmers intoworld-beaters. Australian sprinter Eamon Sullivan, who was fifth inthe 50-meter freestyle at last year's global meet, broke the worldrecord three times in less than six weeks in a Speedo. Frenchsprinter Alain Bernard, who didn't make the 100-meter freestylefinal, broke that record twice in two days.
Both of those marks had endured since 2000, when swimmers wearingSpeedo's Fastskin suit won 28 of 33 gold medals in Sydney. TheFastskin, modeled after a shark's drag-resistant covering, sparkeda similar controversy, with critics claiming that it favoredtechnology over ability.
"With every change, from silk to wool and cotton to nylon andlycra, there was controversy," said Bruce Wigo, chief executiveofficer of the International Swimming Hall of Fame. "This isnothing new."
More than any other sport, swimming has made great evolutionaryleaps in design over the decades. When Duke Kahanamoku won gold in1912, he wore a silk suit. When Johnny Weismuller was the world'sbest sprinter in the 1920s, he wore wool with shoulder straps. MarkSpitz, who won seven gold medals in Munich in 1972, used a nylonbrief with no cap or goggles. From there, it was lycra, thennylon-and-spandex "paper suits," the trend always lighter andslicker, with more glide and less drag. "We're always developing,"said Deb Yeomans, project development manager for Speedo's Aqualab."It never stops."
The LZR Racer is the latest upgrade to the bodysuit that came inwith the new millennium. While it can take at least 15 minutes towriggle into, the suit can make a swimmer feel like a Master of theUniverse. "I dive in," said Hoff, "and I feel like I'm shootingthrough the water."
While some purists yearn for the days of Russian sprinter AlexanderPopov, who won four Olympic gold medals in the '90s wearingglorified bathing trunks, most swimming insiders concede that theera of the Action Hero is here to stay.
"Everything in the world evolves and improves," said Bob Bowman,who coaches Phelps. "You just can't go back to that simpler time."
John Powers can be reached at jpowers@globe.com .