Swimming: Athlete, not swim suit, will win medals: Park

SYDNEY - New Zealand selector Graham Park has an open mind about whether bodysuits should be allowed in the swim leg of a triathlon.

Australian company Speedo said this week that its Fastskin bodysuits would be available for the Olympic Games triathlon in Sydney in September.

Some competitors are expected to have them for the International Triathlon Union world championships in Perth tomorrow.

Whether any of the New Zealand contingent will be among them was still uncertain yesterday, although Shane Reed is due to take part in a Speedo news conference today on the impact the innovation would have on triathlons.

There is a split in Australian swimming circles over whether bodysuits should be allowed. The controversy has crossed over to triathlons, with Australian competitor Greg Bennett calling for the suits to be deemed illegal.

He called for all neck-to-knee costumes to be ruled out, including wetsuits.

"I think they should ban them [suits] altogether," Bennett said.

"We should all be wearing swimmers and it should be made an across-the-board rule."

However, Park described the bodysuit as an exciting innovation.

"We shave our legs and cut just about everything off our bodies to make us lighter and faster. So if this is going to help, I think we should look at it," he said.

Park had no qualms about the prospect of only some competitors wearing the suits tomorrow.

"It might give them an advantage, but if you have the best bike in the world it is still the motor that is important."

The world championships will be the last chance for New Zealand's triathletes to impress the selectors ahead of the Olympics.

So far only Ben Bright, with his fifth placing in the World Cup event in Sydney this month, has secured a berth.

By contrast, world No 2 Hamish Carter is under pressure to produce a good performance after a disappointing 32nd placing in Sydney.

While Triathlon New Zealand has set a top-15 finish in Sydney and Perth as a guideline for selection, Park indicated that a poor result tomorrow would not necessarily mean the end of a triathlete's Olympic hopes.

Conditions and the course in Perth were different from what they would be at the Olympics, and those variables had to be taken into account.

The Perth event features a swim in a river as opposed to in a harbour, has more hills for the bike leg and has much flatter terrain for the run home.

Park said that although some races had priority, it was only fair to assess all performances and not judge athletes simply on the one race.

- NZPA