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August 24, 2020 - Reminder: Tech Suits Not Allowed for 12 & Unders Starting September 1, 2020


The tech suit restrictions, proposed by the Age Group Development Committee, will go into effect for 12-and-under swimmers beginning September 1, 2020. Below are complete lists of the suits that will be restricted for athletes 12 and under, and then a list of those tech suits that will be allowed for athletes 12 and under:


For a detailed breakdown of approved and restricted tech suits by brand, click the links below:


A Technical Suit is one that has the following components: 

  • Any male or female suit with any bonded or taped seams is defined as a technical suit regardless of its fabric or silhouette.
     

Bonded Seam                           
TechSuitSeamBad250x250

Sewn Seam
TechSuitSeamGood250x250

  • Any male or female suit with woven fabric and to the knee or mid-thigh is defined as a technical suit regardless of the type seams: bonded, taped or sewn. (Note: A woven suit with sewn seams and in a male brief or female regular cut not to the knees is not defined as a technical suit and is not restricted).
     
Woven Fabric                             
TechSuitFabricBad250x250

Textile Fabric
TechSuitFabricGood250x250

 

Compliant Suits

checkmarkAny suit that does not have the FINA logo on it is approved for 12-Under use.

There are a handful of suits in the market that have the FINA logo that would be considered legal for age group competition because they do not meet the definition of what is deemed a technical suit. These suits and only these suits will bear an additional check mark logo developed by USA Swimming to indicate that the suit is complaint with the rule. This check mark will be placed to the left or right of the FINA logo on the suit. A picture of the check mark logo is next to this paragraph

Suit Manufacturer Feedback
Suit manufacturers have a vested interest in both this legislation and future growth of the sport. Virtually all the manufacturers agree that the high end/highest cost tech suits are not appropriate for use by younger swimmers. Manufacturers have provided significant input during the process of defining tech suits and have been given a reasonable lead-up time to adjust product lines and have agreed to adapt to the proposed restrictions. All major brands in the USA market were actively involved in this process and 14 manufacturers overall were consulted.