The UK's Times reports that Adidas may abandon the world of ceompetitive swimming and the race suit market if FINA doesn't ammend it's swim suit rules to be 
"fair and professional". The paper quotes a source as saying “Nike is gone. Adidas could well be next. Adidas hardly needs swimming. Swimming needs adidas. Nike is unlikely to be persuaded back. The sport is in disarray.”
Adidas was the make of the first bodysuit in swimming which was worn by swimming great Ian Thorpe (pictured.) Now it looks like Adidas will follow Nike out of pool leaving Speedo, TYR, Arena and Blueseventy to duke it out. But European coahces are urging FINA to investigate the Bleseventy Nero that was worn during the Olympics and FINA/ARENA World Swimming Cup. Swimnews online reports:
The suits (blueseventy nero) were bought for the swimmers to use just an hour or so before they wore them in a race (and at all) for the first time. In the coaches' exchange, the swimmers are quoted as saying that the Blueseventy “changed our body position and significantly increased buoyancy. It was just different swimming, different swimming technique...". One expert told SwimNews that coaches are claiming that the Blueseventy requires a change in technique because of its "wetsuit" build. A coaching nightmare and an issue that is contributing a sense of chaos that carries risks of serious financial damage to swimming.
All this attention to the sport may seem like a good thing but FINA which will be meeting in February might be forced by the coaches and the press to enact new rules which may or may not ban the various suits which could include the Speedo LZR, the TYR Tracer, the blueseventy Nero and others.
Aside from the battle of the materials of the swim suit and how they are put together a new aspect just occurred to me. In the charges against Blueseventy the coaches were quoted as saying the swimmers had to change body position which makes me ask "if a swimmer has had previous experience swimming in a suit do they have an advantage?" I ask this question because part of some of these swimmers contracts allows them to give input to swim designs which will allow them extensive training in such tech suits. So for example Michael Phelps works with Speedo for months developing the Speedo LZR than Phelps gets a special design suit during this summers Olympics designed and cut for his body. Compare that to those swimmers who only had a day with an off the rack Speedo LZR. Talk about tech suit doping. And I am not making that up as Phelps did have custom fit LZR's from Speedo. When does FINA draw the line to special fit suits for swimmers? This swim tech war is only beginning and it'll be interesting to see what FINA does or does not do in Feb of 2009.
sources:
LANE9 News "adidas Might Leave Swimming"
Swimnews "European Coaches Urge Blueseventy Ban"
Swimnews 'How Close Is adidas To Hanging Up Its Suits?"
Times UK "Adidas threatens to abandon swimming"
disclaimer: this swimmer has a blueseventy nero bodysuit.
