Decades ago, society and surfers could never imagine wearing neoprene wetsuits, as they did not exist.

Since 1872, swimmers have been attempting to cross the English Channel in the same manner: nothing that may aid a swimmer’s speed, buoyancy or heat retention is allowed. No wetsuits, webbed gloves, paddles or fins.

There are few sporting activities in the world where the equipment standards have remained so consistent over such a long period.

Dr Lisa Stansbie has created tongue-in-cheek two-metre-tall photographs entitled Channel Swimwear Rules! to highlight this consistency over 13 decades of Channel swimming.

Lisa Stansbie Ph.D. of the University of Huddersfield who has participated on an English Channel relay and completed numerous swims sanctioned by the British Long Distance Swimming Association. Her artwork will be exhibited in the United Kingdom and at the 2012 Global Open Water Swimming Conference aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California.

Lisa Stansbie is also the co-founder of The Big Blue Swim with Michael Koumbouzis. The Big Blue Swim is a Greek swimming adventure holiday tour that takes swimmers around the beautiful islands of the Ionian Sea, in and around Lefkada and Kefallonia and the hand-like shaped island of Meganisi.

For more information on the 2012 Global Open Water Swimming Conference, visit here.

Copyright © 2012 by Open Water Source