Born in Australia in 1928, the swimwear manufacturer 'Speedo' that has made its name known worldwide. Their competitive swimwear is particularly famous, worn by many top swimmers around the globe. This year, in line with the Paris Olympic year, the brand announced a new competitive swimsuit. We asked Hideyuki Nishikawa, the head of the speedo division at Goldwin, to explain the full story.
The Oldest Swimwear Brand Born in Australia
The international swimwear manufacturer 'Speedo', currently based in the UK, began with the release of the classic fit swimsuit 'Racerback' by founder Alexander MacRae in 1928. Nishikawa talks about the history of the brand:'"Speedo' is the oldest competitive swimwear manufacturer, celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2028, the next Olympic year. At the core of the brand is the belief in creating the fastest swimwear possible. A recent memorable moment would be the launch of the 'LZR Racer®' in 2007, looking ahead to our 80th anniversary."
Swimmers wearing the new swimsuit 'LZR Racer®', which was launched for the 2008 Beijing Olympics season, kept breaking world records, grabbing the public's attention.
"I don't think there has ever been a time in the history of sports where the outfit has had such a significant impact on the record. Rules were introduced to regulate the size and thickness of the swimsuits, due to the significant influence of the 'LZR Racer®' on the record, ensuring that there is as little difference in time due to gear as possible."
So what exactly made the 'LZR Racer®' so great? Nishikawa continues:
"In my personal opinion, the biggest factor was to reduce the volume in the water to decrease drag. In order to reduce volume, we succeeded in reducing water resistance by squeezing the body into the swimsuit, limiting the impact on necessary muscle movements as much as possible. That's why it was such a big deal to wear it, taking even male athletes 30 minutes and female athletes an hour to put on.
"In addition, at that time, swimwear materials that float like wetsuits were allowed, so it was possible to keep the swimming posture parallel to the water surface. As a race progresses, the lower limbs tend to sink, increasing water resistance. By using a floating material, the swimmer was able to maintain a straight posture underwater, which I believe led to faster swimming.
"Of course, there were technical factors like the shark-skin material with low water resistance and the laser-bonding of fabric seams to minimize unevenness, but the key was reducing body volume and improving underwater posture.'
After twists and turns, the 'LZR Racer®' was banned in 2010. The rule change, which was almost equivalent to resetting the know-how built up during the high-speed swimsuit era, meant that from then on, swimsuit development had to closely align with the athletes.
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