I live in the Washington area, and I cringed when I saw the article. I take a bit of pride being associated with masters swimming, but this article, and the fact that masters swimmers are debating this issue I find embarrassing.
Just to offer one more person's perspective: FINA banned the suits because they provide advantages deemed inappropriate for swimming competition - the same concept that outlaws wetsuits. To me that says it all.
It is called "Masters Swimming" - meaning (real) swimming competition for masters athletes. Its not called "Masters Aqua Games", or some other name that would acknowledge that we are really a beer league.... something separate and fundamentally different than "actual" competitive swimming.
I'm with you. I found the article to be very downward looking on us. It make us seem like a bunch of ninnies out there. The first part that got me was saying that we are "non-elite" swimmers. There is a better way of describing why our organization is called Masters. Masters just means we are over the age of 18 - simple as that. I find there are many elite Masters swimmers. The excuses the article used as to why some want to use the suits made us sounds like people who need to tuck in skin, hold joints together and worry about skin cancer. Not a good light to portray us at all.
Keep them for masters. They're fun. If you don't like them, don't use them.
One argument I often hear (from men) about the body suits is that they don't like to shave.
So I offer your own argument in response. Textile jammers only, like the rest of mainstream swimming. If you don't want to shave, don't do it.
If FINA continues to say the suit rules don't apply to Masters,then I think that USMS should take the lead in proposing rules to all other Masters groups.Then I believe there should be a global masters standard.My preference for that would be the FINA/USA-S proposal as I don't want us marginalized nor different rules for combined meets vs Masters only meets.That is just my preference,I'd be OK with just about any GLOBAL standard,but I don't want to be at a disadvantage compared to Masters swimmers elsewhere.
There is also a minimum weight allowed for a bike durring a race, again, not being able to use the latest technology.
Claiming cycling hasn't adopted and even embraced technology is absurd. Did you watch the TDF? Do you follow cycling? Maybe they haven't adopted every single nit picky breakthrough but that's a far cry from turning back the sport as swimming is doing.
I live in the Washington area, and I cringed when I saw the article. I take a bit of pride being associated with masters swimming, but this article, and the fact that masters swimmers are debating this issue I find embarrassing.
Just to offer one more person's perspective: FINA banned the suits because they provide advantages deemed inappropriate for swimming competition - the same concept that outlaws wetsuits. To me that says it all.
It is called "Masters Swimming" - meaning (real) swimming competition for masters athletes. Its not called "Masters Aqua Games", or some other name that would acknowledge that we are really a beer league.... something separate and fundamentally different than "actual" competitive swimming.
I cringed as well. I opened the link expecting a well reasoned article one way or the other on the issue and was met with something quite different and odd quotes from our leadership. I would also prefer that USMS follow the rules of FINA (whatever those end up being) so that our records/sport are not viewed as a beer league as you call it.
However, if USMS leadership and a vast majority of its members don't want to follow FINA suit rules, then we should be very clear that we are not following FINA's rules because we like going fast and not going backwards, we can afford it, and our organization is about people having fun and choice in how we swim. In that case, maybe we should just open it up to wetsuits and suit stacking as well. Beer leagues can be fun, but not going with FINA's rules would change USMS to something different than what it is currently. Maybe USMS can attract some of the elite swimmers to wear rubber suits at our nationals and our USMS records can be faster than existing world records (if FINA wipes out all the existing rubber suit records). Perhaps, USMS can become (or sponsor) that professional swim league that someone thought would be a good idea a few months ago and USMS can remarket itself as kind of a swimming circus sideshow.
Tim
One argument I often hear (from men) about the body suits is that they don't like to shave.
So I offer your own argument in response. Textile jammers only, like the rest of mainstream swimming. If you don't want to shave, don't do it.
I don't get that argument because alot of the elite swimmers are still doing a full shave with the new suits. With the textile suits, the hairs go through the suit so you still have to shave.
As I approach 50 years of age - I too am, and always have been VERY self conscious about my body and I do not see any issue with allowing Masters swimmers the option of a full-body suit or not - as long as they are textile. I personally don't believe the full body textile suits give ANY (or at least very little) advantage other than a mental aspect of faster swimming, but as an ever aging athlete (which we all are), I would prefer to cover up a bit more than when I was younger. In fact if I could afford to wear a full-body suit in practice, I would (not really, but it sounded good).
I don't agree with the statement that if USMS has different suit rulings that it would create a scenario that we are a beer league of swimming. I think as long as we create rulings that prohibit the same materials as what FINA is proposing then we are still keeping the intent of the law intact. But I would at least like to see USMS change their rulings back to being able to wear two suits in competition, I personally get a rush when I get a good time wearing drag suits in competition.
I live in the Washington area, and I cringed when I saw the article. I take a bit of pride being associated with masters swimming, but this article, and the fact that masters swimmers are debating this issue I find embarrassing.
Just to offer one more person's perspective: FINA banned the suits because they provide advantages deemed inappropriate for swimming competition - the same concept that outlaws wetsuits. To me that says it all.
It is called "Masters Swimming" - meaning (real) swimming competition for masters athletes. Its not called "Masters Aqua Games", or some other name that would acknowledge that we are really a beer league.... something separate and fundamentally different than "actual" competitive swimming.
