The invention to make fins with angle is not not new. Allmost all kinds of manufactured fins since 1950 have have an angle. The angle help normal people with normal ankles to use the fin more effectly.

Will we not allowed normal short rubberfins in competitions? In competitve finswimming angled monofins have been used frequently since 1996. Since that it is possible for finswimmers with normal or bad flexibility in ankle to compete in equal conditions as finswimmers with exaggerated flexibility in ankles.

Do we want finswimming to be a sport there only people with exaggerated flexibility in ankles can be in top level?

Is it good if young finswimmers struggle with hard excessive stretching for ankles or wish to make a operation to be able to swim with the fin in optimal position?

Is it good if young finswimmers choose another sport because he/she cant stretch the ancle good enough, or worse stop sporting totally?

Isnt it better if every finswimmer is free to choose a fin which is siutable for her/hes body. The choice of how much angle the fin will have, must be as free as footsize, area and hardness.

The new fins we have seen in competitions the last 8 years, is a good progress of our sport which will make competitions equal conditions and progress of results.

Now big producers of monofins like Waterway, MatMas and Sebak started to produce monofins with angle. Its not only a few persons who have the knowledge to built good monofins.

1982 I was a 17 years old boy with not so good flexibility in my ankles. In world championships I was competing against finswimmers from Soviet Union which was selected to finswimming because thiere exelent flexibility. I swam with Russian monofins made for persons with great flexibility, I was third in 400, 800 and 1500 meters only after finswimmers from Soviet Union. If in this time was possible to swim with monofins adapt to everyones body, the result could be diffrent. Now Im coaching a group of finswimmers. I dont want to tell some of them "You dont have a future in finswimming, because of your ankles dont fit the monofin".

For people who like to swim but dont like progress and equipment, I advice you to go to classical swimming.

Best regards to all finswimming lovers,

Valter Olander

Sweden

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