Swimming: Speed-suit stars in the swim for Olympic glory

By PETER JESSUP

Get used to swimmers in full bodysuits.

There are concerns at the use of the new speed skins, but swimming officials worldwide, including those at this week's New Zealand championships, are resigned to the suit's gradual spread through the sport.

It means the Olympic sprint starts might look like a bunch of "aerobic burglars," with little more than cheekbones, hands and feet showing.

The regulations relating to the suits were tested at the recent world shortcourse championships in Athens.

Manufacturers adidas and Speedo had satisfied world governing body Fina's objections, so swimmers wore the suits. Anyone who now tries to stop individual athletes wearing them will undoubtedly face court action.

The first speed suits were made of Lycra. The New Zealand team had the opportunity to test them in the weeks before the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, but chose not to disrupt routines. At that time the designs were not recognised.

The latest suit is the Speedo Fastskin, a synthetic fibre design said to be based on shark skin.

The manufacturers claim that the incredibly small suits, which literally stretch over the swimmer's body, have several advantages.

* The tightness prevents oscillation of any loose tissue, reducing drag.

* The fit improves laminar flow of water over the body, reducing drag.

* The tight fit also slows build-up of lactic acid (which works against oxygen uptake) in the muscles.

It is claimed that the design gives a 3 to 5 per cent improvement in performance.

Fina's rule in relation to swimwear is: "No swimmer shall be permitted to use or wear any device that may aid speed, buoyancy, or endurance during a competition [such as webbed gloves, flippers and fins]; goggles may be worn."

The manufacturers did make changes to satisfy concerns about buoyancy before the suits were cleared for the Athens meeting.

The Australian Olympic Committee has decided that the suits are "technical equipment" and as such it is up to individual athletes as to whether they use a suit and if so, which type.

So far only the Australian swim stars have used them in inter- national competition. But this week both companies manufacturing the suits offered them free to Olympic prospects.

The Fastskin full suit sprinters want will reportedly sell for $1200, the price decreasing with size. The middle-distance swimmers have been testing a short arms-and-legs version, while the value at longer distances is questionable.

New Zealand coach Brett Naylor is not a fan of them but accepts that suits of all shapes look like being part of swimming's future.

"When you have that sort of technology you use it. There's merit in it, it cuts down oscillation in the water and must improve times. But I'm something of a purist ... briefs only.

"I don't want to see us go too far down this line - next we'll have ridges that assist water flow, like an America's Cup keel thing.

"Where do you draw the line? I'd say at briefs."