Aquapel is a technical racing

swimsuit A swimsuit is an item of clothing designed to be worn by people engaging in a water-based activity or water sports, such as swimming, diving and surfing, or sun-orientated activities, such as sun bathing. Different types and styles may be worn ...

designed by Tyr Sport, Inc. It has a unique creation process that gives it a high-speed design, turbulence reduction and advanced compression biochemics. The suit fits snugly and uniformly across all parts of the body. The suit also sports strangely placed seams that together make-up what TYR calls

hydrodynamic In physics, physical chemistry and engineering, fluid dynamics is a subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that describes the flow of fluids – liquids and gases. It has several subdisciplines, including (the study of air and other gases in moti ...

flow panels. These flow panels have been specially designed to reduce turbulence, and aid in the smooth control of water flow. In 2005, these suits ranged in price from roughly $55 for a racer to $220 for a

bodyskin Competitive swimwear refers to the swimsuit, clothing, equipment, and accessories used in the aquatic sports of swimming, diving, artistic swimming, triathlon, and water polo. Some swimsuits are designed specifically for swimming competitions ...

Construction

Aquapel is constructed of a unique

Lycra Spandex, Lycra, or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity (physics), elasticity. It is a polyether-polyurea copolymer that was invented in 1958 by chemist Joseph Shivers at DuPont. Name The name ''spandex'', which ...

blend. It is passed through a series of rollers, which flatten the material while still maintaining its original strength and recovery ability. Then it is heated, which sears the material, giving it its unique shiny finish. A hydrophobic solution is the applied to the finished material to reduce the chlorine and water absorption of the fabric. Combined, all of these applications help the suit reduce drag and micro-turbulence, while advancing the hydrodynamic principles of the suit.

Performance

The suits have been seen at the

2000 Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

, but their popularity was far lower than that of their competition, the Speedo Fastskin.

References

{{Reflist Swimwear brands One-piece suits