SportsLine.com wire reports
Aug. 8, 2000

INDIANAPOLIS -- Hundreds of Olympic hopefuls plunged into water Tuesday wearing all sorts of attire.

Some revealed a minimum amount of skin -- heads, hands and feet. For others, the arms and lower legs were exposed. A few men looked like they forgot to take off their pants before they jumped in.

Indeed, the revolutionary bodysuit is a full-fledged part of these U.S. Olympic trials.

"I'll be wearing it until I die," quipped Tom Malchow, world record-holder in the 200-meter butterfly. "It came at the right time. It's getting everybody excited about the sport."

Of course, the bodysuit wasn't exactly welcomed to Indianapolis with open arms. While cleared for use in all other meets, the American governing body initially banned the high-tech attire from the trials, fearing there wouldn't be enough to meet the demand of the 1,309 swimmers who qualified.

But one manufacturer filed a grievance and another offered to outfit everyone free of charge, prompting USA Swimming to reverse its ban less than a month ago. So, when the trials open Wednesday, anyone who wants to wear the bodysuit -- in its various incarnations -- will be free to do so.

Malchow believes it was important for the U.S. team to have access to the suit at the last major competition before the Sydney Games, just a month away.

"I was already swimming fast, regardless of what kind of suit I wear," he said. "But I'm happy to wear the suit, and I think it's good for everyone. You don't want to go to a big international meet like the Olympics wearing the suit for the first time."

Although Speedo claims its Fastskin suit improves performance as much as 3 percent, not everyone is taking the approach that covering more skin is the only way to go.

"It's like a girl putting on nylons, only 10 times worse," said Kristy Kowal, a hopeful in the breaststroke. "I couldn't get it over my foot."

Therefore, she'll stick with traditional attire at the trials and in Sydney, assuming she makes the team.

Neil Walker, only the third man in history to win seven medals at a major international competition, will wear a bodysuit that doesn't cover his arms. He only wishes the move to legalize the new attire had come sooner.

"If it had been a year earlier, we would have a lot better feel and be confident in all types of suits," he said. "It was sort of crash and burn to get ready for the trials. We had to hurry up and get used to it."

Only the top two will qualify in individual events for the Olympics, which means the record field -- more than twice as large as the 570 entrants in 1996 -- will be whittled to around 45 swimmers by the time the trials end Aug. 16. Much like the format used in track and field, only the fastest swimmers on their particular day can expect a trip to Sydney.

"Nothing is handed to us," Malchow said. "Nothing is taken for granted. Everybody is on level ground. Sure, I'm the world record-holder. But there's nothing gained from that here."

The format has been altered, however, with a semifinal round added in most events between the preliminaries and finals.

For swimmers like Walker who are planning to compete in several events, the extra swim could take a toll. On the other hand, world record backstroker Lenny Krayzelburg looks forward to the additional work.

"I'm not swimming in a lot of events," he said. "It's great to have an extra 100 back or 200 back. I can work on certain things and see how my competitors are looking."

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