“Body Suits Are Over-Rated,” Says The Thorpedo

By IAN THORPE
The Australian

IF I win an Olympic gold medal this year, I don't
believe it will be because of a swimsuit. I'm pleased that the Australian Olympic Committee has given me, and all Australian swimmers, the choice of wearing my preferred suit, but it is not going to make a major difference to my performance. No matter what swimsuit anyone wears at our Olympic trials in two weeks, or at the Sydney Olympics, the best swimmer will win on the
day.

I'm not going to put the success I've had in the past, or may have in the future, down to the suit because I have worked too hard to attribute all that success to a swimsuit.

It's the same when people say I swim so fast because of
the size of my feet. That devalues my effort. It's the hard work we put into our preparation that allows athletes to perform best on the day.

I'm surprised the swimsuit issue has become such a big
deal and I think it's happened because of a misconception. Speedo is saying its Fastskin suit is a 3 per cent improvement on its previous one, the Aquablade, but when that was launched in 1996,they said it was a 22 per cent improvement. Yet swimming times did not improve by 22 per cent from 1995 to 1996 and I don't expect them to drop by 3 per cent because of the new suits.

I think it's the visual impact that has made the new
suits so controversial. They look so different that people think they must be very different. While I don't think the bodysuits are illegal, I thank the Australian Olympic Committee for raising the issue of whether the suits meet the International Swimming Federation's rules.

Under FINA rules, no swimmer may wear a device which
aids speed, endurance or flotation. FINA doesn't interpret that rule as applying to swimwear. But the dictionary defines "device" as anything designed to
achieve a purpose – and a swimsuit has certainly been designed to achieve a purpose. That suggests there is a legal loophole which would allow one swimmer to challenge another.

The rule should be changed to reflect the way FINA
interprets it, which is that swimwear is not a device.
Otherwise, every swimsuit since 1938, when silk
swimsuits went out, should have been banned.

I'm not concerned that someone might challenge me for
wearing a bodysuit,because whatever swimsuit they might be wearing, will have broken that rule as well.

While I don't think the new suits make much difference,
I still want the right to wear my preferred suit. When you are looking for that tiny bit extra, not much is a whole lot.

I approached the AOC for permission because I wanted the opportunity to wear the best possible suit, regardless of the team sponsor. It's the same as
track athletes choosing their running spikes and I don't think that has destroyed the equal playing field in athletics.

I have been testing the Speedo suit for the past two
weeks and I have done it thoroughly. I wanted to make sure I gave it a fair go,because I would never
jeopardise my success at the Olympic Games, or any
competition, to please my sponsor.

I did four training sessions in it. Many of the sessions had speed work, some had endurance work and some a combination of both. I tested efficiency off
the walls, efficiency on the turns, efficiency off the
dive, total time, heart rate – everything I could think of. I put it through the same conditions I would test in any swimsuit. Some times I preferred one suit, other times the other. But my thinking when I
started this was to find the swimsuit that allowed me
the best athletic performance possible and I felt it was the adidas suit. That's why I signed with them last year. It wouldn't be the right decision for
all swimmers because the performance of the suits is going to vary a lot between athletes, depending on
technique and body type. It will come down to personal
preference.

I made my stand because when I swim, I want to do
everything to permit my best performance. I am prepared to do anything – except take drugs or food
supplements, which would artificially enhance my
performance.

I don't think the swimsuit does that. It just allows me
to swim naturally.

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