With the London Olympics less than two months away, there’s more chaos in the swimsuit department.
When aquatic leaders decided to ban rubberized bodysuits three years ago, it was thought that it would put an end to the technological arms race roiling the waters. And, indeed, there’s not nearly as much focus on what everyone is wearing or how many world records will be broken at these Games.
“The suit does matter. It does help,” said Bob Bowman, coach of 14-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps. “But it just gives them a little sharpness. It doesn’t completely change them as a swimmer.”
Still, mirroring the anarchy that seemingly ruled at the 2008 Beijing Games and the 2009 world championships, swimmers are shedding suits provided by their sponsors to wear apparel perceived to be faster. Teams are jockeying to make sure their athletes have the best suits available — no matter who is their official supplier.
This time, the roles are reversed for two of the main manufacturers.
Whereas Speedo’s LZR Racer was all the rage at the last Olympics, Arena’s Powerskin Carbon-Pro appears to have the edge this time.
“Four years ago, the performance difference was much larger,” said Giuseppe Musciacchio, Arena’s general manager for brand development. “We’re not talking about seconds now, but tenths can also make a difference in an Olympic race.”
Speedo unveiled its 2012 products, the Fastskin3 Racing System, at elaborate presentations in November featuring Phelps in New York and Rebecca Adlington in London. Besides the suit itself, the system features wide, angular goggles that allow for peripheral vision, plus a new cap that is designed to reduce resistance in the pool even more. But neither the suit nor the system has caught on.
“The new suit is horrible,” Netherlands coach Titus Mennen said at last week’s European Championship in Debrecen, Hungary. “It gets very heavy and it’s difficult for the women to put it on, pulling the (straps) over their heads. Then it bunches up in the water. That’s something Speedo has to work on.”
Not this year. According to the rules put in place by governing body FINA in 2009, all suits being used this year had to be submitted for approval last July 1 and be on the market by the first day of this year.
So, many athletes are still wearing Speedo’s 2010 suit, the LZR Racer Elite, which was introduced after FINA limited men to jammers covering only the waist to the knees, and women to suits covering shoulders to knees — both made from textiles only.
“We’re swimming with the old suits,” Mennen said. “We’ve asked to get new versions of the old suits by the summer, but Speedo is not eager to provide them again.”
Speedo disagreed, insisting “the Fastskin LZR Racer Elite suit will be made available to any athlete who can and chooses to wear it during the Olympic Games.”
The U.S. squad allows its athletes to wear any suit they want, though the team is sponsored by Speedo.
Speedo said Phelps and teammate Ryan Lochte, the two leading medal contenders heading into London, are using the new apparel.
“Michael and Ryan have both recently competed in the Speedo Fastskin3 Super Elite and Elite suits, Super Elite Cap and Elite goggles and we anticipate they will wear the Speedo Racing System this year,” the company said. “However, some athletes who prefer the familiarity of a fully bonded and lightweight suit continue to wear the Speedo LZR Racer Elite suit.”
World-record holder Jessica Hardy is among those using the 2010 suit. She hasn’t had time to get used to the new Speedo goggles, either.
“The depth perception is really different and I can see more than I would like to see in them,” she said. “I think I’m just going to try it later, after the summer.”
