Women's 1968 British Olympic team-inspired swimsuit
Maker
Speedo International Ltd
Date1968
Object number00019008
NameSwimsuit
MediumNylon, cotton
DimensionsOverall: 710 x 320 mm, 0.07 kg
Clothing size: 34
Clothing size: 34
ClassificationsClothing and personal items
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Speedo International Ltd
DescriptionThis one piece women's swimsuit, featuring the 1968 British Olympic swimming team uniform design, was produced in the USA under license from Speedo. The nylon fabric combines an abstracted version of the red, white and blue Union Jack flag and plain red stripes. The swimsuit is fully lined and panelled and has a quarter skirt with the red Speedo 'arrow' logo on the right hip. 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.Canterbuury, under license from Speedo
1964