USA Swimming initially banned the suits from the August Olympic trials but relented when suits were made available to all competitors. A number of articles such as Brent Rushall’s, ("A Serious Threat To The Very Nature of Competitive Swimming or Not?" By: Brent Rushall, Ph.D., R.Psy [Revised December 19, 1999] http://www.swimmingcoach.org/articles/200002/20002_1.htm) argue that if the suits provide the boost that the manufacturers claim, they should be banned as equipment, like pull buoys and paddles. And to add to the controversy, a recent article in Swimming Technique calls the new bodysuits a "bust" and claims that a study done by Indiana University’s Human Performance Laboratory, showed no statistically measurable effect on swim performance at the recent U.S. Olympic Trials in Indianapolis.

A visit to Speedo’s web site (http://www.speedo.com) reveals a number of claims about the new Sharkskin. It describes how Speedo looked to nature for a better swimsuit design to reduce drag. They studied the shark which is fast in the water but not naturally hydrodynamic. To emulate the shark, they sought a design which decreases drag, boosts performance by compressing the muscles, and minimizes discomfort and rubbing. Their web site states, "The shark's quickness is attributed to V-shaped ridges on its skin called dermal denticles, which decrease drag and turbulence around its body. Due to the drag effect that occurs when an object travels through water, Fastskin™ fabric was constructed with built-in ridges emulating sharkskin. ...Fastskin™ is composed of ‘super stretch’ fabric made to improve the suit’s fit and compress muscles. The result is a reduction of drag and muscle vibration, which increases productivity... By scanning digital images of swimmers in eight different positions, SPEEDO® was able to identify exactly how the body moves and stretches. Using this information, SPEEDO® created a suit with a much closer fit."

A recent article in Swimmer magazine ("The Emperor’s New Swimsuit", by Chip Zempel, January/February 2001), notes that treatments of the suit’s fabric with a coating of Teflon or a similar substance, result in water sliding off the suit and an interesting side effect: air is trapped between the suit and the swimmer’s skin making the swimmer more buoyant. This caused a number of swimmers at the Olympics to go to the blocks dry since they were afraid of losing some of the suit’s buoyancy by warming up. So the suits affect behavior as well as performance.

The article in Swimming Technique, ("Bodysuits a Bust?" By Joel Stager, J. Skube, D.A. Tanner, and H.H. Morris, October-December 2000) did a statistical comparison between forecasted times based on a model of the past 12 years of trials, and the final results. They noted that in 13 events, their predictions were off by less than one percent. They concluded that the bodysuits had no statistically measurable effect on swim performance at the 200 trials.

It seems it’s not completely clear whether the suits make you swim faster. However, there’s no doubt they will empty your wallet! A recent Speedo catalog list versions of the Sharkskin ranging from $96 for the "Recordbreaker" to $288 for the "full bodyskin". Happy laps!