A Look At How Olympic Swimsuits Have Changed Over The Past 125 Years

Swimming has been an Olympic event since the very first modern Games were held in 1896. In its early years, however, only men were allowed to compete in Olympic swimming events, which were held outside in open water rather than pools. Above, Alfréd Hajós of Hungary poses in his Olympic swimsuit, which featured a shorts-style similar to suits Olympians wear today. In 1896, Hajós took home two gold medals for the 100-meter freestyle and the 1,200-meter freestyle.

Swimming was still a men’s only event at the 1904 Olympic Games held in St. Louis, Missouri. Above, Germany’s Emil Rausch poses in his Olympic swimsuit, which in all honestly looks very much like someone wearing underwear over shorts and a tank. Raush won Germany’s first-ever Olympic swimming medal at the 1904 Games after coming in first in both the 880-yard freestyle and the 1-mile freestyle.

Women were finally welcomed to compete in official Olympic swimming events (the 100-meter freestyle and the 4x100-meter freestyle relay) in 1912. Above, Australia’s Mina Wylie and Fanny Durack stand left to right in swimsuits and caps on a dock during the 1912 Games in Stockholm, Sweden. Both swimmers competed in the 100-meter freestyle event with Durack winning gold and Wylie winning silver.

A little over 10 years after women began competing in official Olympic swimming events, societal ideas about modesty meant women’s Olympic swimsuits hadn’t drastically changed. While swimmers from the same country began wearing a uniform suit embellished with an emblem of their country (as opposed to a plain suit or a suit of their own choosing), suits still featured modest low-cut leg openings and a relatively baggy fit.

At the 1932 Games, men’s Olympic swimsuits still favored a tank-style top and short-style bottoms, as shown here on American swimmer Buster Crabbe. Suits were often made using silk, which when wet became uncomfortably clingy.

The 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles was also where Australia’s Claire Dennis (above) sparked controversy with her wool-and-silk Speedo swimsuit. According to Swimming World Magazine, Dennis’ suit featured a back that was cut low enough to show her shoulders — something unheard of in women’s swimsuits at the time. Complaints were lodged about Dennis and her swimsuit, alleging it showed too much shoulder and should result in her disqualification. FINA, swimmings international governing body, ultimately approved the suit, ruling it met all Olympic standards for competition wear. Dennis went on to win the gold medal in the 200-meter breaststroke.

The Olympics began to allow male swimmers to compete bare-chested in 1936, although only a handful of swimmers opted to exchange their full-body suits for the more daring briefs style suits. By 1948, however, brief-style suits were popular among a number of male Olympians, including those above preparing to dive into a pool at the start of the men’s 100-meter freestyle final at the 1948 London Olympics.

In 1956, Speedo solidified itself as the dominant international brand in competitive swimming when it sponsored and outfitted the entire Australian Olympic swim team. Above, members of the Australian women’s swim team celebrate in the pool after winning the 4x100 meter relay at the 1956 Olympic Games. The 1950s were also when Speedo became the first swimsuit manufacturer to use nylon in its swimsuits, effectively improving their drag, elasticity, and overall durability.

Tighter (thanks to nylon) and a bit shorter, women’s suits came in a variety of colors at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

In the ‘70s, patterns dominated Olympic suits, including the one worn by Germany's Kornelia Ender for the women’s 100-meter butterfly race.

At the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, women’s Olympic swimsuits featured thin straps and modern necklines and back and leg cuts, making them much more reminiscent of the athletic styles actually being worn at pools and beaches around the world.

The technology used in suits we see Olympic swimmers wear today can be traced back to 1992. This was the year Speedo released its S2000 suit, which provided the wearer with 15% less drag than traditional swimwear fabric at the time. According to Speedo, 53% of all swimming medals won at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona were won by athletes wearing the Speedo S2000.

Pushed by a desire to be faster, male swimmers began ditching the barely-there brief-style for suits that offered more coverage, and thus more opportunity to reduce drag on the skin. Unlike the wool and silk suits of the past, these suits were made from technologically advanced fabric capable of not only reducing drag but also repelling water and increasing a swimmer’s speed. At the 2000 Games in Sydney, Speedo unveiled its Fastskin suit, which featured full-body coverage and ridged fabric inspired by shark skin. Above, Chris Fydler, Ashley Callus, Michael Klim, and Ian Thorpe of Australia celebrate after winning the men’s 4x100-meter freestyle relay and setting a new world record. Michael Klim, second from right, wears a full-body suit while his teammates wear other coverage options.

Of course, men weren’t the only ones looking for suits that might enable them to cut through the water faster. A few female swimmers, including Amy Van Dyken, Dara Torres, Jenny Thompson, and Courtney Shealy of the United States (left to right above) also wore variations of the greater-coverage suits.

Speedo unveiled the LZR Racer, which the company claimed was the most technically advanced swimsuit in the world, just ahead of the 2008 Olympics. Along with increasing swimmers’ buoyancy and speed through the use of elastane-nylon and polyurethane, the suits also compressed muscles to help cut down on fatigue. According to the brand, 92% of all swimming medals won at the 2008 Games were won by athletes wearing LZR Racer suits. Of course, the suit wasn’t without controversy as many likened it to “technological doping,” ABC News reported. They were ultimately banned from professional swimming in 2009.

Although not driven by modesty, Olympic swimmers like Simone Manuel of the United States have continued to favor suits with more coverage due to the performance advantage they offer.

At the Tokyo Games, spectators watched Katie Ledecky of the United States compete in red-white-and-blue suits designed by TYR. However, the suits’ designs haven’t proved incredibly popular on social media. According to Yahoo! Sports, some have suggested the privacy panels included in women’s Tokyo Games swimsuits made it appear as if swimmers had wet themselves.