Women's 1964 Swedish Olympic team-inspired swimsuit
Maker
Speedo International Ltd
Date1964
Object number00019005
NameSwimsuit
MediumNylon, cotton
DimensionsOverall: 420 x 295 mm, 0.05 kg
Clothing size: 30
Clothing size: 30
ClassificationsClothing and personal items
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Speedo International Ltd
DescriptionThis one piece women's swimsuit, featuring the 1964 Swedish Olympic swimming team uniform design, was produced in Australia under license from Speedo. The dark blue nylon swimsuit is fully lined and panelled and has a quarter skirt. The red Speedo 'arrow' logo is found on the right hip and a cotton cloth badge with the Swedish national emblem has been sewn onto the chest. Speedo first released commercial ranges of the designs they produced for various national Olympic teams in the 1960s.HistoryIn 1955 Speedo introduced nylon into its competitive swimwear designs, and the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne saw the widespread use of the new fabric. From 1957 the Federation Internationale de Natation (FINA) allowed the modest half skirt of women's swimsuits to be replaced with the quarter skirt.
The introduction of the quarter panel saw an improvement in women's racing times as their swimsuits became much more streamlined and closer fitting. In 1972 FINA finally allowed women to swim skirtless for the first time.
SignificanceProduced as a stock item, this swimsuit demonstrates the influence of Olympic team designs on Speedo's commercial swimwear ranges in the 1960s.