Arena, the “water instinct” global brand, has announced its entry into the world of finswimming, with a range of high-tech swimwear that can perfectly fit the needs of this very fast and growing discipline. Drawing on a legacy of more than 40 years of innovation, R&D and technological power, arena’s products – certified for finswimming competition by the sport’s governing body, CMAS – are ideally suited to both the pool and open water versions of the sport.
The first recorded finswimming competitions occurred in the 1950s, with the World Championships staged in 1976 in Hannover, West Germany. At competitive events, participants contest races in four different techniques: surface (monofin), apnea (50m underwater with monofin), immersion (underwater with monofin and breathing apparatus), and bi-fins (surface).
There are over 300,000 finswimmers throughout the world, out of whom 10,000 are actively participating in official competitions. The sport’s global governing body is the Finswimming Commission of the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS), which is responsible for a range of underwater sports. In addition to the setting of competition rules and organization of championships, the Commission is also responsible for the approval and certification of products to be used in official competitions.
Arena’s long term technological leadership in racing gear for watersports has proven to be the leading edge also for Finswimming.
The range is very broad and ensure a perfect performance and fit to any athlete’s need and it is composed as follows:
Powerskin Carbon-Pro is a top-of-the-range swimsuit employing arena’s breakthrough carbon technology. By integrating a carbon cage into its fabric, the suit provides intelligent muscle compression, locking down like a seatbelt on overextended zones to provide maximum compression when and where it’s needed, without compromising on freedom of movement. In addition, its power return system features elasticized internal tapes, which “spring back” to give added power on each dive, kick, and turn. Swimmers wearing carbon suits returned record results at the 2012 Olympics, 2013 World Long Course Swimming Championships, and 2014 World Short Course Swimming Championships. The Carbon-Pro sits at the apex of swimsuit technology, and its unmatched compression capabilities make it ideal for sprints and shorter distances.
Powerskin R-Evo+ is made from high-tech Z-Raptor+ fabric, delivering superior hydrodynamic performance with superb stability and body alignment during the stroke, along with optimal compression, maximum freedom of movement, and unmatched comfort. In addition, low-profile, bonded seams help to reduce surface drag, providing an ultra-smooth glide through the water.
Powerskin R-Evolution’s ultra-thin fibres give the suit’s fabric especially high density, weighing in at an ultra-light 99 gr/sqm. This provides strong muscle compression, enhanced body balance and stability in the water. In addition, it is made with a single piece of fabric with bonded thermo-fused seams. The result is suit that offers significantly reduced drag, a longer peak swimming time, and most importantly, greater speed.
Powerskin original full body suit is made from ultralight fabric with minimal water absorption and a water drag coefficient close to zero. It is the suit that launched the company’s Powerskin legacy, and remains one of the company’s flagship products. The full body suit is recommended for long distance racing and training.
The next event on the finswimming calendar is the third leg suite of the Finswimming World Cup to be held in Barcelona on 21-22 March.
“It’s really exciting to start writing a new chapter of arena’s history in a new watersport discipline,” said Cristiano Portas, arena CEO. “We are very proud to make our experience and competence in racing swimwear for watersports available to competitive finswimmers through our top-of-the-line products that have been proven at the highest levels of swimming in both the pool and open water. As a discipline, finswimming dovetails perfectly with our overall water instinct philosophy, and we’re looking forward to applying our technology and experience to this world of aquatic speedsters. We’re confident that we can bring a lot to a sport that is still relatively young and starting to push new limits – it’s just the kind of environment we thrive on.”
CMAS-approved arena products are available for purchase at www.arenafinswim.com. For specific questions or further details send emails to info@arenafinswim.com.
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