Speedo's Fastskin3 Racing System reduces swimmer's passive drag 16.6%, active 5.2% and O₂ consumption 10%.
When worn as a complete system of suit, cap, and goggles, passive drag, which impedes gliding while submerged, is reduced by up to 16.6 percent, and the amount of oxygen needed by the swimmer at a given speed is reduced by up to ten percent. Finally, active body drag, resulting from the waves that the swimmer creates, the swimmer's constantly changing shape and the force of the water passing over the body's surface, is reduced by as much as 5.2 percent.
Development of the racing system relied on expanded multiphysics simulations that included both fluid dynamics and structural mechanics.
The simulations also examined how the cap, goggles, and suit interact with each other, so that the overall design is of a system whose components not only have individual characteristics, but also support each others' operation to improve overall performance.
Following the design work, Speedo arranged for pool tests of Fastskin3 prototypes by professional U.S. swimmers, including Natalie Coughlin, Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps.
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