The Tribune

WHEN seconds count, the right clothing matters for Olympic athletes competing in Brazil and competition has been hot between leading manufacturers for the Rio de Janeiro Games, which open on Friday.

Nike used 3-D printing technology to develop small silicone protrusions for redirecting air flow around the runner. Body scanners helped Adidas design suits to keep swimmers in ideal form. Swiss cycling specialist Assos turned to wind tunnels to craft custom, form-fitting suits for the US cycling team.

Innovations in suits and shoes have speeded up, thanks to advancements in how clothing is designed and tested, all as manufacturers get creative in working around rules enacted to prevent the apparel equivalent of doping.

“We make sure we stay inside those rules, but we will get to the very edge of them if we can,” said Adam Clement, senior creative director for team sports at Under Armour. “Our goal is to innovate in a way that ultimately makes the Olympic rules change. We’ll adjust, but we’ll feel proud of that accomplishment.”

Why it matters

Clothing needs to be form-fitting to minimise air resistance, especially for speed events in cycling, swimming and track.

But the wrong materials or designs could mean discomfort and unnecessary weight, counteracting the gains from drag reduction. Clothing also promises to reduce irritations such as sweat and heat.

Preventing problems

Clothing alone won’t make up for years of training, good coaching and the right body mechanics, but the wrong kind can hurt.

“You’re not going to catch magic on race day from magic shoes,” US marathoner Desiree Linden said.

“But if I train really hard and I get a blister or don’t step on my foot right, the race doesn’t matter any more.”

For Rio, US cyclists got their Assos suits two weeks ago and will have the option of wearing their regular outfits if they don’t like the fit.

The outfits

Athletes typically get clothing and shoes as part of brand-sponsorship deals. Running specialist Brooks turned to Linden to help design her Hyperion shoes. The shoe fabric eliminates seams to reduce the risk of blisters, while rubber rings on the bottom boost traction in slippery terrains and serve as barriers to contain and propel energy back up, according to the company.

Under Armour uniforms for the Canadian rugby and the Swiss and Dutch beach volleyball teams borrow NASA spacesuit technology to reduce body temperature. The insides have crystal-pattern sheets to absorb heat from the body.

Nike is embedding air-resistance protrusions in track suits for 24 teams and will also make them available as a tape for runners to stick on their arms and legs.

The boundaries

Swimming has among the toughest guidelines after Speedo’s full-body suits - which are no longer permitted - were developed with NASA to boost buoyancy and reduce drag.

Adidas’ Adizero XVI swimsuits for Britain’s Chris Walker-Hebborn and other swimmers have elastic-like bands meant to keep bodies in streamlined positions.

That minimises drag and propels swimmers in the pool. Because the rules allow Adidas to place the bands only over seams where pieces of fabric meet, Adidas moved the seams over to where it wanted the bands to be.

Adidas also took the unusual step of designing a model just for the breaststroke to account for the way a swimmer’s legs move outward in the frog kick, rather than up and down in the more traditional flutter kick.

In the labs

Omar Visentin, chief operating officer and former research chief at Assos, said clothing manufacturers now have more sophisticated ways to tests fabrics and the way they are cut and measure minute differences in performance. Other companies even use computer modelling to design that perfect suit with fewer prototypes.

For the Vazee Sigma track shoes that US sprinter Trayvon Bromell will wear, New Balance turned to 3-D printing technology to test multiple configurations to improve traction and energy transfer.

Nike also used 3-D printing and wind tunnels to improve its air-resistance protrusions, which worked only for sprints during the 2012 Olympics. Miller said prototypes from 3-D printing allowed Nike to find a shape that works for longer distances, too.

Adidas designed its Adizero MD mid-distance shoes to account for the bends on the track, rather than just the straight portions of races. It tested various combinations of stiffness and thinness to keep runners like Kenya’s David Rudisha stabilised so they don’t slow down on the curves.

ANICK JESDANUN

Associated Press