New Swimsuits vs Steroids???

[Velcro]

The suit is the same for every single swimmer... and there is no negative health risk... that is the main point here.

Sure, records are being smashed, but technology (better equipment) helps people in EVERY sport smash records.  Long ago, Jack Nicklaus hit the ball 300 yards with his wooden head club and people were in awe.  Now guys are out there with extra long titanium or graphite shafts with jumbo titanium heads hitting the ball 340 IN THE AIR... and it doesn't phase people because so many people can hit the ball over 300 now.  That is a huge increase in technology helping the game. 

Wearing the clothing isn't making you move forward, it is just reducing resistence from the water... you still have to work through the water and so does everyone else wearing the suit.

With steroids, you get the clean guys like Griffey etc, doing right, and then the guys like Giambi, Caminitti (sp?), Canseco, McGwire, Sosa, Bonds getting their artificial boost from chemicals that are designed to make your body produce at super human levels.  These suits aren't designed to increase strength or anything... just to make less resistence.

Cars get more aerodynamic over time because we learn ways to reduce drag.

Sprinters shoes weigh almost nothing now.  It is a natural progression to make the equipment better and better and if some science comes out that makes the equipment better, without artificially propelling someone (and steroids is essentially artificially propelling your strength/stamina) then that should be fine.

Hey, if someone can prove this clothing is propelling people forward, then I would think about it being illegal... but there is just nothing I see wrong with any of this.

If someone injected this material into their skin so their skin was naturally water resistant, THAT would be over the line ;D

[smazza]

whats the difference?  all these world records are getting broken and its clearly due to these new swimsuits.  how do you feel this compares to steriod use in baseball? 

both are scientific advantages.  and both would probably of been used by every generation of athlete prior if it was available. 

some old school swimers want asteriks next to these new world records just like the baseball records.

honestly, i think these new suits give swimmers a bigger advantage over swimmers without the suits then steroids gives a baseball player over players without steroids

none

swimsuit manufacturer makes millions

records fall

[smazza]

The main difference is steroids are illegal.

lots of players used them with prescriptions and it wasnt against baseball rules

[smazza]

let athletes juice

[Bull Martin]

Steroids are not allowed in sport because of the possible health effects.

Swim suits, well swim suits don't cause cancer or kill people.  So, I see no reason to asterisk records attained with them.

I do understand where the old swimmers are coming from.  Maybe they should get aterisks.

let athletes juice

Can't say I disagree.  Baseball might even be tolerable to watch if this were the case, but it's still not likely...

[Jamie]

Babe Ruth hit 714 homers and most of them were in a borderline dead-ball era. Should Hank Aaron have an asterisk?

Look at how much bigger hockey goalies have become, with all their equipment and armor. There aren't any asterisks on the goals-against average or save percentage records.

And there are dozens of Olympic sports where equipment advances have changed the game. The Fosbury Flop wouldn't be possible without an air-inflated landing bag. You couldn't possibly jump as high as you can now in the pole vault without the super-flexible pole. Bicycles are way more advanced than they used to be. Even in the winter Olympics - look at the sleds for bobsledding and luge, or the speed skating skates. The only difference is none of these are as high-profile as swimming.

[Bruce Blingstein]

when these swimmers just happen to be crushing these records by FULL seconds, something is up.

The proof is in the pudding

[Apis Bull]

The main difference is steroids are illegal.

lots of players used them with prescriptions and it wasnt against baseball rules

Which ones?