Speedo Lazer?

Question

Hey I was wondering if anyone could give me their opinion on these suits or if you have any additional info for me?

My opinion on these suits is that they are a major breakthrough in the swimming world, but it comes with many flaws. When I say that I don't mean flaws in the way they were made, but those being sponsored by Speedo may not have the ability to buy a 500 dollar suit. And I'm afraid that in lower meets, such as Junior Olympics, or Age Groups, where you would normally wear a simple aquablade or fastskin, that's when money becomes an issue. I'm sure the swimmers in the Olympic Trials right now get that suit for free because Speedo would get so much advertising out of it and it really is the difference between 2nd and 3rd place with a spot on the Olympic team. But don't you think that in conclusion, it is causing more controversy(sp?), Speedo is getting free advertising, and swimmers feel like they need to get those suits to win instead of relying on their ability to swim?

Answer 1

I think it's a cool suit. I think it does make people faster, but I'm torn on athletes competing in them. I don't mind Fastskins and those sorts of suits. The material in those suits does something swimmers can't do on their own like compress their muscles or create a layer that's faster than skin in water. The biggest problem I have with the LZR suit is its "core stabilizer."

Having good core strength is something that is essential to every swimmer and something that can be achieved through hard work and practice. The person that wins the race is often the person whose muscles hold out the longest and that includes the core muscles. Having a suit do this for you feels a bit like cheating to me as it is something swimmers can and should improve upon.

As for children wearing these suits, that's a little ridiculous. I'm also not a fan of children wearing FSIIs, Aquabaldes, or any of those technical suits. I think high school is a more appropriate age to begin wearing these kinds of suits because by then you've usually made a lasting commitment to the sport and the competition is pretty serious. Competition can be serious when you're a kid, but I don't think it's serious enough to shell out $80-$300 a suit unless you're toward the national level.

Answer 2

1) Speedo isn't getting "free" advertising. This is a carefully planned marketing campaign. This isn't the first time for Speedo in this role. Part of the cost is giving the suits to elite athletes for free. The remaining market is pretty small.

2) The Speedo LZR isn't going to swim the race for you. It won't elevate a mediocre swimmer to elite status.  

3) The $500 pricetag is not that big of a deal if you consider the total costs of training at an elite level.

4) All truly competive athletes will take advantage of technology -- even if the advantage is largely psychological. It would be crazy not to.

5) Compared to sports like cycling or triathlon, swimming is cheap and technologically neutral. Fans of those sports will think that swim fans are being whiney Luddites to complain about one lousy swimsuit.

Answer 3

I think it's amazing!

Answer 4

I talked to a member of the Olympic Team back at a Sectional meet (technically, at the time she wasn't on the Olympic team as she just qualified a few days ago), but apparently the athletes (at least her) do not like how the suit fits.

While it may be "fast", it is very, very tight. However, due to their contract with Speedo, they are required to wear it.

If you're not on the Olympic (or at least national) level, don't bother getting one. I doubt they cut off more than a hundredth of a second, especially compared to FS2 or aquablade.

Plus, if you're on the Olympic level, you are just given the awesome suit, you don't buy it.

Mostly, the kids in the super-suits are just wanna-be's and usually aren't that fast.

Bruce