FINA prepares to approve new list of high-tech swimsuits for world championships

FINA prepares to list swimsuits OK’d for worlds

LAUSANNE, Switzerland — Swimming’s governing body has begun deciding which high-tech swimsuits can be worn at the world championships next month.

A three-man executive committee met at FINA’s headquarters on Friday to consider up to 146 swimsuits it rejected last month as unfairly assisting swimmers by trapping air or repelling water. Manufacturers were given 30 days to resubmit modified designs.

The officials — FINA president Mustapha Larfaoui, honorary secretary Bartolo Consolo and treasurer Julio Maglione — were joined by scientist Jan-Anders Manson, who designed tests to measure swimsuits for buoyancy and permeability.

Their list of newly approved suits is set to be issued Monday, adding to the 202 swimsuits they certified last month.

FINA hopes its definitive list will restore order to the sport before the worlds begin July 26 in Rome.

A technological arms race was unleashed in the pool when Speedo launched its NASA-designed LZR suit 16 months ago. Since then, more than 120 world records have been broken.

Rival manufacturers have tested the limits of FINA’s rule book, while the governing body was widely criticized for failing to give clear leadership.

Some records set by swimmers wearing non-permeable, polyurethane body suits have yet to be ratified by FINA.

A total of 13 manufacturers presented their swimsuits on Thursday to a FINA-appointed panel of experts, which has made recommendations to the three-man committee.

Seattle-based suit maker BlueSeventy resubmitted 11 designs and brought its own scientist to question the testing process.

“We presented a rock-solid argument that our suits do not trap air and feel this will help convince FINA to put us back on the list of approved suits,” BlueSeventy spokesman Dean Jackson said in a statement.

The approved list will cover all competitions until the end of the year.

FINA has commissioned Manson’s team at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne to perform a round of more intensive tests later this year. They will form the basis for a new list taking effect in January.