The Making of a Classic: The Medalist
THE MEDALIST
The Victorian swimwear which predates the 1900s might as well be from Mars. They were long, heavy gowns, designed to cover as much as possible. Even the fabric was made to pull away in the water to obscure the wearer’s frame. They unfortunately reflected the morals of the time. Hardly fabulous.
It wasn’t until swimming became an elite level sport that the design started to take on what we recognise today. The suits needed to be faster, tighter and sleeker, and it was Speedo who understood the assignment, introducing nylon and spandex into their designs in the late 1930s.
But it wasn’t simple. In 1932, at just 16 years old, Clare Denis was nearly disqualified for wearing a Speedo suit deemed to show too much skin. The dropped shoulder and tighter fit of the Racerback as it was known then, would become a precursor to our classic Medalist shape. Then, however it was heavily protested. The claim was later thrown out and three days later, she’d won gold in the 200m Breaststroke. Pretty iconic from the get-go if you ask us.
It wasn’t until 1957 that the shape evolved further. A nylon costume was developed for Australian trailblazer’s, Lorraine Crapp and Dawn Fraser. Fraser in particular was an elite swimmer with a ferocious attitude and a tendency to disrupt the natural order. A bit like the famous suit, itself.
There’d be a bit of a wait, but what came next would become our best-selling suit ever. The Medalist. In 2002, its high cut shape gave you more room to move, which meant more power to move through the water, and the circular cut-out at the back mirrored, you guessed it, a medal.
Classics like these rarely change. However, in the latest iteration, the added seam lines on the straps have saved over 27,000m of fabric which is now made from Eco Endurance fibres, a far more sustainable choice, and now a Classic for years to come.
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