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Swimming Australia has weighed into the international debate over controversial high-tech swimsuits, asking the world governing body to cease approval of any further swimsuits.
Speedo’s LZR suit, worn by Australian swimmers at the Beijing Olympics, has caused controversy throughout the world as debate has raged whether the suits have been the main catalyst in several world records.
Australian coach Alan Thompson was quoted in News Limited papers on the weekend saying new suits should be banned with swimmers such as Olympic gold medallist Federica Pellegrini sometimes wearing up to three of the suits at once.
And Swimming Australia (SAL) president David Urquhart has backed Thompson, saying his organisation would ask the world governing body FINA to cease approval of any new uits immediately and request that the rules be amended so swimmers can only wear one.
“After long debate and input from SAL’s High Performance Unit and other stakeholders our board unanimously agreed that FINA’s swimsuit approval process needs to undergo an immediate review, in particular in relation to fabrics and the manufacturing of swimsuits,” Urquhart said.
“Australia supports other member federations and members of the international swimming community in this endeavour.”
The board also said they had modified their competition swimwear by-laws for age group swimmers, meaning swimmers will be limited to one suit only in Australian age-group competitions (18 or under).
The new regulations mean men will have to wear a suit that must not extend above the waist of below the knees, while women’s suits will be open-backed, open-shouldered and not extending below the knee.
In addition, Swimming Australia’s new rules state no suit must have a zipper or fastening system.
“The future of swimming is about the swimmers, not about the swim suits,” Urquhart said.
“We believe swimmers and coaches at an age level should concentrate on getting the best coaching and training for the athletes and not the best swim suits.”