New Gear A Suit Of Amour
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday February 18, 2008
THEY may need to invent some sort of large shoehorn to help get them in, but the new "space-age" Speedo swimsuits passed their first public test over the weekend.
The LZR Racer suits, developed with NASA and the Australian Institute of Sport, are seamless, have a corset-like midriff for core stability, and are made from water-repellent material. Several swimmers wearing them at the NSW Open produced fast times.Grant Hackett was one, posting his best times in three years in the 200m and 400m, and while he endorsed the new suit, he said there were other factors to consider. "The suits are a great product, they obviously do the trick, but it's an Olympic year so we're always going to see people improve," Hackett said. "It's been collective; the team now is starting to get really strong. That balance between men and women is starting to even up."Another world record holder, Jessicah Schipper, admitted it was a lot of effort getting into the suit."The corset around the middle, it just pushes your body up," she said. "You don't even have to train to keep your bum out of the water, it does it for you."
© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald