Swimsuits Banned, Records Questioned

He fails to qualify in two events, barely makes a third

(AP) - Wearing an old-style swimsuit, Michael Phelps missed out on two finals and barely qualified for a third today at a World Cup short-course meet. Phelps failed to qualify for the finals of the 100-meter freestyle and 100 backstroke. He qualified in the 100 medley, finishing seventh in 53.13 seconds. He'll try two more events tomorrow. More»

Swimmer challenges others to switch before ban takes effect

(NEWSER) - Michael Phelps challenged his competitors at the upcoming FINA/Arena World Cup meets to race without the full-body technical suits recently banned by swimming authorities for providing an unfair advantage in speed. The ban doesn’t go into effect until January, but Phelps said he was “getting ready for where the sport is going,” by switching early to a waist-to-knee “jammer.” More»

Stunning reversal raises questions about role of high-performance bodysuits

(AP) - Germany's Paul Biedermann handed Michael Phelps his first major individual loss in 4 years—and snatched away his world record, too—with a stunning win in the 200-meter freestyle at the world swimming championships today in Rome. Virtually unknown outside his country before this meet, Biedermann has now erased Ian Thorpe from the record book with a win in the 400 free and knocked off the most successful Olympian in history. More»

Swimming aims to weed out banned attire

(NEWSER) - Swimmers at this year’s world championships will be subjected to a barcode test to ensure their suits are legal, the Times of London reports. Suits’ buoyancy will be checked before the event, with each outfit assigned a code. At race time, the suits will be scanned; if they don’t match up to the given code, swimmers will have 20 minutes to change. More»

(AP) - Michael Phelps and the US 400-meter medley relay team closed the fastest meet in swimming history with an appropriate finish Sunday night in Rome—the 43rd world record. Phelps earned his fifth gold medal of a world championship that showed he's still got plenty of motivation, even after scoring a record eight golds at the Beijing Olympics. More»