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Head Of LEN Confident Of Imminent Suit Solution

Feb 5, 2009  - Craig Lord

Nory Krutchen has not long taken over the presidency of LEN, the European governing body but is already making his time at the helm count. In the latest edition of the continental federation's magazine, Krutchen declares that suit technology has gone too far. 

Expressing his belief that FINA is well on the way to resolving the mess of 2008 - which culminated in a farcical scenes at the European s/c championships, with swimmers wearing two and three suits, some in wetsuit flotation tools others in smart fabrics that have helped to enhance performance significantly beyond the normal capacity of some swimmers - the president of LEN and FINA Bureau member states in an editorial:

"I agree with those who say you can not prevent progress. But, you must guide it and not let it pull at its own pace. I’ve heard comparisons between our beloved basic sport and Formula 1. The fact that this is brought up in this way to me already indicates that things have gone off track. Car racing relies on ‘devices’ that take the ‘athletes’ or pilots to push to the limit of the capacities of these machines. Engineering is a fundamental part of car racing. And you race cars. Swimming is not Formula 1. Swimmers are not to use ‘devices’ to swim faster. Swimmers race themselves.

"We can use all sorts of similes and compare with all kinds of situations of technological interference in other sports and disciplines (we’ve heard it all), but we are not to lose sight of what makes swimming special. We are the caretakers of the sport, we know it better than anyone. This year has produced almost five times as many European Records as 2007. I believe we can confidently say that never before in history has ‘progress’ made such a massive impact. It’s too much."

He concludes that LEN has "full confidence in FINA’s capacity and determination to set the ‘records’ straight."

The new edition of the LEN Magazine features a "Star Wars" collage on its front cover, with C-3PO in a fast suit. Inside, you can find editorials looking at both sides of the argument, including one by this author. There's also a debate on the calendar chaos and how the guardians of the sport are making steps to resolve it, plus a large feature entitled Futureland, in which writers looks at the possible shape of things to come in all five aquatic disciplines in the years ahead.

Krutchen has also thrown his energies into a President's Monthly Newsletter to his troops. His snippets include the following reference to the first FINA World Coaches Conference in Singapore FINA: "Although it was not on the official agenda, the swimsuit affair was definitely on everyone’s mind as well. February will see the matter further discussed with the swimwear manufacturers and the March FINA Bureau Meeting in Dubai (UAE) will have FINA make its decision. All due steps toward a satisfactory conclusion to the matter are being taken."

LEN, meanwhile, has agreed a new four-year contract with Arena. Both the LEN President and chief exec of Arena Cristiano Portas expressed "pride" in what is now a long-time partnership.

Plans are well underway for the next European Short Course Championships, in Istanbul in December. The event, to be hosted in the new Pendik-Kurtkoy municipal pool (nearing completion), may be the last to be held in December, given that FINA has moved the world s/c champs to a permanent December home from Dubai 2010.