Ryosuke Irie of Japan is confirmed as a member of the club of those who set records in suits that had not been approved by FINA and must now be modified if they are to be used for the rest of the year.

On May 10, the 19-year-old wore a Descente development suit during the Japan-Australia duel in Canberra and clocked 1:52.86, 1.08sec inside American Olympic champion Ryan Lochte's world mark.  But Descente has now confirmed in Japan that the suit - described as the arena/descente Rubber - by Japanese swimmers in Canberra - is among 136 suits that FINA sent back to the cutting room. June 19 is the deadline to meet standards for thickness, buoyancy and water resistance.

"Of course, I'll be happy if my record is recognized," Irie told the Japanese media. "But regardless of this outcome, my goal is to win a medal at the world championships and re-write the world record." In which suit though? "The suit failed to meet the standards for buoyancy," descente confirmed in a statement.

The Japanese media reported that the Japanese Swimming Federation will ratify Irie's mark as a Japanese record regardless of what FINA does. We assume that Japan's FINA Bureau and delegation worthies agree with that stance - and may therefore find themselves in conflict with FINA. 

So much for standardisation, harmony and "family".