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Team Families:
A
lot of money has been made and spent on swimsuits in the last few
years. Zippered suits have allowed swimmers to put on suits
that provide compression, suit materials that are mostly
impermeable trap air and give the swimmer buoyancy, some of the
suits have been made with wetsuit materials that have their own
buoyancy. Suits that are slicker than skin have been designed
to cover the body to cut resistance for the swimmer. All of
these developments are simply technology, and haven't changed the
fundamentals of swimming except to make it a more expensive
sport.
On January 1, 2010, these technologies are banned worldwide by FINA
(and as I say, FINAllY!). USA
Swimming has chosen to ban these October 1, 2009, so
please do not go purchase any "tech suits".
To summarize the rules as of October 1st:
- Girls suits cannot cover their
neck or shoulders or knees
- Boys suits cannot cover their
navel or knees
- No zippers or fasteners other
than a drawstring for the boys
- Suits must be made out of fabric
(as opposed to impermeables such as rubber).
The
most simple way to purchase a suit within the rules is to purchase
a team suit from MI Sports with a tight fit. The tight fit
will cut resistance and preserve the suit integrity through more
swims because water flows around it more than through it.
The team suit looks good, doesn't cost a lot of money and is
within the rules - so get one for racing in and continue to
practice in something else.
Head Coach, Tex
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