Well - I am not going to sue anybody, but I still don't think this is fair. A company should not be able to say - this suits is 2% better than anything else - and then not make it available to everybody.
They are getting around this by having "stands" at the big US meets where you can borrow an LZR (not sure, but I am guessing TYR is doing the same).
I am guessing they will not come to USMS meets - lol
Maybe they mean that the suits will only be ready for all Olympians. Didn't that happen when they first came out with the fastskin? Would you borrow a LZR if they did come to any USMS meets? Oh, ps - wasn't laughing at you in my above post, I thought you were being sarcastic to see if they'd get you a suit asap. Sorry.
:o
Anyone who thinks sports are about a level playing fields is naive. You can't level any playing field in sports. Sports that try that are roundly lampooned, like gull's NASCAR for example. As an adult I intend to use my resources as I see fit and that does not mean I need some people who can't afford a suit to tell me what to do.
What about an athlete that trains longer, harder, smarter. Maybe we should tell him not to train too much. What about the athlete that has access to a better coach and facilities. Maybe we should tell her she can't participate and has to swim in a dumpy pool. What about people who have genetic abilities that predispose them to better swimming. Maybe we shoudn't let them compete. It's all about a level playing field, after all.
Communists rule!
You can not get the suit - it is that simple. I will give you my size and an extra $20, and you can get us the suits for the next meet.
OK, I understand, but why does that make people all crazed? There are lots of things I can't get but that doesn't mean I don't want you to get them. Makes no difference to me at all.
There are probably not enough FSII or FSPro suits for every competitor that might participate in FINA competition. Do you believe there are 150,000 of these suits in stock right now?
Apples to oranges in my mind. If you want an FSII or FS Pro right now you can order one online and probably have it within a day or two if you pick the right shipping options. If every member of USA Swimming tried to order one at once, then, yes, there wouldn't be enough, but that's beside the point. The fact is these suits are available to the general public right now and the LZR is not.
There are very few high tech equipment items that are available to all in every sport, fact of life. Even if they are generally available, their price tag excludes many. I wonder if the next logical step in this argument is affordability. Seems if you can't afford it, that could be yet another playing field to level, to some anyway.
People get upset because of the appearance that the rules are not applied fairly.
No, people get upset because they don't have the resources or skill to get what they need, then they get jealous, then they whine and say the field isn't level.
My argument confuses nothing. There are vast differences between pools and coaches and facilities throughout the nation. That is no different that a swimsuit.
If the manufacturer can't meet demand the suit should not be in use until they have enough stock that everyone who wants one (or minimally can afford one) can get one.
So much for capitalism, this pretty much sums it up. Insanely anti-American argument. I can't believe anyone can actually argue this type of lunacy.
Let's figure this out. A manufacturer has a product people want but can't keep up with demand so they stop sending the product out until they have enough to supply. Of course, the subsequent total lack of supply erodes all demand and the manufacturer is subsequently put out of business or forced to unload the product at any price. That's some kind of system, benefits no one, harms everyone.
Actually it does. When you show up at the pool your lane is the same width and length as all the other lanes in that competition. The conditions under which you have to compete are the same as everyone else's so the "field is level". There is a difference between saying that the conditions of competition should be the same and saying that all the players have to have trained under the same conditions.
Another bogus argument. I guess if you exclude the 99.9% of the time you actually spend training versus competing, then your point is valid. I can't stand this mess - you feel that we should all have equal shots, I obviously feel you do what it takes to win.
If the suit were available to everyone for purchase and use, I don't think we would be having this discussion at all. People could make their own decision about the value of any performance benefit the suit may provide. Since it is not, Speedo/ FINA is fueling controversy by allowing its use.
Even if the suit were available, people would be byatching about it just like wet suits.
Controversy is good for swimsuit sales and driving up demand.
Hard to ever have a level playing field, as Geek notes. Even on race day, there are huge differences. What if someone is sick or injured or couldn't sleep that night or their plane got in late or they had no chance to get used to the bulkhead or their suit ripped or ballooned or their coach wasn't there or they had to swim back to back events or they drown in the wake of sandbaggers or they swam in an outside lane or whatever ... So while the pool itself might be the same, other conditions of competition are inherently unequal.
FS Pros were in short supply for a while too. Is FINA supposed to say "a new suit can't be used until there a 100,000 available?"
Yes, they should say this...in progressive countries like Cuba, N. Korea and Burma, or whatever they call it these days.
