UPDATE: From AP:
She set the world record in the 50 breaststroke with a split of 29.95 seconds when she time-trialed the 100 breaststroke on Thursday.
Hardy wore a Jaked suit Friday. It and other record-breaking polyurethane bodysuits will be banned by swimming's world governing body on Jan. 1.
[Link]
Roland Schoeman in the 50-free SCM, Joanne Jackson in the
Joanne Jackson was not wearing a LZR, only Rebecca Adlington was and Adlington was quoted in the Times Online as looking forward to January 1st, 2010 when suits are outlawed. Personally, I think it was the Speedo LZR that put her on the map since she is a 'soft and comfy' and the Speedo delivers amazing body compression with its polyurethane panels.
Getting down to business Speedo has taken a huge hit. Once the world record leader in swimsuit design but now it wouldn't be an understatement to say that for the first time in 40-years of swimming, Speedo is not seen as the number one. They have been replaced by Arena and even the Jaked 01.
We will leave the speedsuit era with Arena and Jaked having the last word for most of the world records in 2009 will have been set in their suits.
How will Speedo convince the swimmer at large that their briefs and jammers will be more, better, or filled with "mad phat win" when compared to Arena or Jaked?
We will leave the speedsuit era with Arena and Jaked having the last word for most of the world records in 2009 will have been set in their suits.
How will Speedo convince the swimmer at large that their briefs and jammers will be more, better, or filled with "mad phat win" when compared to Arena or Jaked?
25 comments:
Adlington's record is SCM, not LCM. It would be a lot more notable if it was the latter.
Its not surprising that there are a spate of scm records being set as people try to stretch their tapers and set some standards that may last for quite a while.
I'm more interested in the Jessica Hardy times at US Nationals--her 100 Breast is remarkable, considering that Soni just broke 1:05 and Hardy is going 1:04 low. Its hard not blame the suits
Thanks Bill, I made the correction - Hardy is sponsored by "Speedo" so she mot likely set the record in a LZR.
i read on another board that hardy was wearing a jaked suit when she broke her record .
She wore a Jaked? WOW! Speedo stuck with her throughout her suspension.
This says a lot about the Jaked and Speedo
Personally I don't think the Jaked is going to get a very strong hold in masters because it's $500 and it's fragile. I think most people's techsuit pain tolerance expires around $300-$350. In that range there are suits that are fast and durable enough to last a whole season or more. How many LZRs have you seen out at meets? I've only seen a few and half of them were jammers or tights, not the full body suit.
http://www.usaswimming.org/usasweb/ViewNewsArticle.aspx?TabId=1267&Alias=Rainbow&Lang=en&ItemId=2582&mid=4153
The finalists in the Men's 200 IM at the US Open in Federal Way all raced in briefs. Got a standing ovation from the crowd. That, ladies & gents, is racing! Congratulations to all of them!
I saw that article and don't believe the source; I think the source is biased.
Tony,
I just finished a weekend at my kid's swim meet. And, fyi, they're both young and swimming what would be, in the USA, summer league.
We had an issue where a kid got bumped from a relay - a 10 year old kid! - by another kid wearing a bodysuit. The parent of the bumped kid was/is convinced that his boy lost out because the other boy "bought" his way on to the team.
Couple parents have kids that have progressed to more serious levels of swimming and those parents know something about the whole suit nonsense. To a person, those parents that do know something about the suits are opposed to them. The damm things are expensive, they rip and kids grow. They out-grow the damm things in a season, if they last that long!
These suits were a disaster for age-group swimming. They screwed up cut times, they screwed up relay selections; they made an already expensive sport more expensive.
Frankly, I have no doubt at all that a bunch parents at an elite meet would look at athletes choosing to race in briefs that cost $30.00 versus bodysuits that cost $300.00 and cheer like mad, if for no other reason than economic!
Age groupers should not wear technical suits; Masters swimmers and elite athletes should be allowed. You disagree and I understand.
Tony - the usa swimming article jives with stuff Swimming World and the Seattle Times posted, however I don't think there were enough people there to give a thunderous standing o for the ordeal (Look at the stands). Even though I'm pro-techsuit I do applaud these guys for stepping up and dressing down as opposed to just talking about it.
As far as age groupers go... I think they shouldn't use techsuits. It hurts the accessibility of the sport for the little ones. But if you're fast enough for the big time you're probably getting suits for free, and if you're in masters it's totally up to you whether you want to spend the dough or not. There's a big difference in what's appropriate for kids and what's appropriate for adults and professionals.
Tony,
The tech suits change stroke mechanics. With tech-suits, the glide in breaststroke is longer and sprint freestyle is more "direct", with a straighter arm recovery and a higher turnover, just to provide two examples.
Stroke technique is the single biggest thing young swimmers need to learn. How do you teach the correct technique to kids if that technique is different, depending on the suit they're wearing?
My last comment was: "Age groupers should not wear technical suits; Masters swimmers and elite athletes should be allowed.
I a never argued for Age Grouper to wear them.
You're missing my point.
My point is this: Teaching stroke technique to young people is imprinting. You want to them to learn that technique to the point where it becomes unconscious; they don't think about, it is simply there. Once technique becomes imprinted, then cardiovascular adaptation can begin and race strategy can be taught.
The challenge the suits present is that technique you imprint with the jammer is different than the technique you use with the tech suit. In a sport define by such small and finite margins, you can - potentially - disadvantage an athlete at a relatively early age.
Jonty Skinner did a paper on this about a year ago. He asked some pretty interesting questions... I don't have the link but I think the article is relatively easy to find.
talking about technique...
you're only suppose to train the way you race, so you really shouldnt use pull buoyes or kickboards.
also... adlington is "plushy?" thats such a nice thing of you to say! lets not give these girls a complexion or anything!
As soon as I hit the post button, I thought, "Crap, I actually used the word plushy."
I will edit the post and use the word "soft and comfy" and only those leaving a comment here will know.
The 200IM at Open was incredible.
Im neither for nor against the technical suits (just take it as it goes) but the crowd went wild. It was the most moving race of the whole meet. During the awards presentation, the announcer was saying something like, "with the eitght fastest time in the World.. with the 7th... in the World..." It is very clear that swimmers and their parents were very excited.
The fastest swimmers still won but on average, they were about 3+ seconds off their bests. The most notable difference was the freestyle. Their pain was apparent in their strokes.
BTW, suits were selling at a sharp discount. Arenas were going for 299 instead of 600.
Arena X-glides were selling for $299?
I know I should have been moved by the effort and emotional reaction from the crowd but I just can't feel it. I am happy for them that they feel that way.
I may be shallow here but I am honest. I guess that is the way I roll.
I really do think that the steady decline in boys taking up swimming will increase due to forced rules regarding briefs and jammers.
Is it possible that masters swimming heard about my reasons for allowing compression assisted swim suits for older swimmers so they may feel less pain and be significantly more stable in the lumbar region, thus limiting back issues and so on and so forth? Allowing masters swimmers to use compression assisted swim suits for these health issues would reinforce my thought that these suits can be considered prosthetic devices, therefore having no place in competitive venues, excepting Masters swimming.
I am loving this comment.
Hey Tony:
Mr. Anonymous - your quote:
"The fastest swimmers still won but on average, they were about 3+ seconds off their bests."
Not sure what 200 IM you were watching, but here is the difference in times - prelims to finals of the 200 IM.
Men's 200 IM - US Open - Prelim vs. Finals Time Difference
0.88 - 0.32 - 1.05 - 1.5 - 1.73 - 1.41 - Time Difference
1.15 - Average of top six finalists
4.44 - 5.79 - Places 7 & 8
Even if you include places 7 & 8 the average time difference is 2.14 seconds..! Not a lifetime of improvement needed to better times accomplished with the "new suits".
Anonymous #2 has a point that prelim vs final time was just over 2 seconds different.
However, lets compare (im not going to do it) best times prior to this competition.
Brown has been 157 and Margalis, and Alexandrov 200 and Sano 159 (these are entry times, possibly not their best times). We see that the overall perfomace is quite a bit off.
There is no reason they would be expected to all go best times, but given that this was high profile meet at the end of the season, it is reasonable to expect them to be in striking distance of their bests. At least it would be if they had the suits on.
One imer loved the race and said it was really great to "remind everyone just how hard it is to go 201."
Watched the 200 IM race and the interviews. The guys seemed excited about the ovation, but NOT very excited about the times and the prospect of next year. "Have not gone rested in briefs since I was 12 ...".
Some sort of tech suit has been around for 10 years now -- and now we are dialing back to the 90s ??
Ted - the suit does make some small adjustments - but I think you are making it a little more dramatic than it is. The benefit is across the board - all these stories about the suits only helping bad swimmers are not exactly proven.
Erik,
You're right, I am being over dramatic re: the suits and their effect on stroke technique. Frankly, if no age grouper is allowed to use them 'till 14, then the "disadvantage" is uniform and is not a disadvantage.
I don't like the suits for any number of reasons, the most trivial being cost and they way they've obliterated our history. My big concern wit the suits has been the fact that different suits provide different advantage and their availability.
For example, as compared to skin, one design offers a 3% advantage while another design provides 6%. In a sport as finite as swimming, where the difference between 1st and 50th is, sometimes, less than 3%, this can not be. We can't have the 50th best athlete put on the "best" design and beat the best athlete.
Bring back the tech suits (And I bet they will.) by all means, (I still won't like them, but I'll live with them.) but make sure you bring them back with rules. What they can be made, what coverage is allowed, water permiability, etc. All needs to be defined and regulated. And, further, no one company gets a head start. Everybody gets the regs at the same time and develops their suits on their schedule. That way you avoid the Speedo LZR debacle of 2008.
What do you think?
Hey Tony:
This was a perfect test case. Prelims - Finals, a couple of hours of recovery in between. Physiology didn't change, biomechnics didn't change. Big meet, good crowd, all conditions consistent.
Pre and Post Test...and the results are in...!
Could you write an analysis and I will post it as a blog post? If you want to be anon, just post it to this comments section and I will make it a post and try to find a photo.
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