Badgers look to make waves with high-tech suits
December 02, 2008 | Men's Swimming & Diving
The only competition U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps had for headlines over the summer was the high-tech swimsuit that helped him to win eight gold medals at the Olympic Games in Beijing.
The Wisconsin men's and women's swimming program will find out what all the fuss is about this week, as the Badgers don their own next-generation suits in preparation for their most important meet so far this season.
Through early November, a total of 77 world swimming records have been broken so far in 2008 and Speedo, manufacturer of the LZR Racer worn by Phelps and countless other competitors in the Olympics, claimed that athletes wearing a version of its high-tech suit account for 71 of those marks.
The total of world records set this year now stands at 90.
The Badgers, however, will turn to blueseventy and its 'nero comp swimskin ' for this weekend's Texas Invitational, which begins Thursday in Austin, Texas. Despite the fact that blueseventy is known for its open-water and triathlon products, the nero suit claimed five world records in the pool in November alone and is designed to be more durable and offer more flotation than the rival product from Speedo.
Senior Kyle Sorensen, left, and freshman Wes Lagerhausen are pictured above wearing the blueseventy nero.
The Badgers will outfit 12 men and 12 women in the suits for this weekend. It will be the first intercollegiate competition for Wisconsin with the new generation of swimwear, although a number of UW swimmers competed at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials while wearing the LZR Racer.
'This is where we wanted to start,' UW head coach staffid=145"> --> Eric Hansen said of the blueseventy suit. 'We're not sure where we'll end up for the NCAAs, but this is important because it's our first go-round since the Trials.'
After they took center stage at the Olympics, the NCAA lifted a moratorium on the high-tech suits in September, opening the door for collegiate programs to use them in meets during the 2008-09 season.
Now, Hansen says, the use of next-generation swimwear is more a matter of necessity if programs like the UW's want to stay competitive.
'They're a must,' Hansen said. 'If you're going to compete at the level we expect to compete at, you have to be in these suits now. '
Hansen expects each of the seven other programs taking part in the Texas Invitational to be fully outfitted in some type of next-generation suit. Making sure the Badgers are on equal footing before they leave the blocks was a no-brainer for the UW coaching staff.
'This meet is important to us,' Hansen said. 'It's our first really focused meet of the year and we expect to be at our best.'
For the Badgers, the highly-competitive event will offer a chance to experiment with the blueseventy and determine exactly what benefits can be expected from the new suits. The UW coaching staff will work on determining the value of layering with the suits and developing an approach that works for each individual swimmer.
'It will give us a good indication of where we're at,' he said. 'We don't want to be at our best for the season at this meet, but it's the prelude to our big training trip in January and our preparations for the NCAAs.'
The Badgers are in no way limited to the blueseventy and may experiment with other high-tech suits, like the LZR Racer, before settling on a competition suit for the NCAA championships in March.
Despite the novelty of the new technology and the attention to sleek suits have garnered around the world, Hansen is quick to not overstate the value of the material in comparison to what's underneath ' the swimmers themselves.
'I don't want the suits to take away from the fact that I've really been impressed with our group so far,' Hansen said. 'Our training has been extremely impressive, and our freshman class really came in fit and ready to work.
'The swimmers have done a good job embracing our system as far as the technical aspects go, and it will be fun to see it all come together for the first time this season. '
