"Why are you "infuriated?"
I'm glad to answer that question. As I've said in this post and my one about the torso rule, I find it infuriating, because I think it's a ridiculous rule and I think the fact that it is enforced reflects horribly on a sport I love and have been doing since 1985 when we all raced shirtless and in little Speedos even in the most conservative parts of the country and I'm guessing the world and nobody cared.
Let me present a hypothetical that given this rule doesn't even seem that far-fetched to me. Let's say Jan Frodeno comes back and wins the World Championship this fall at the age of 42 after missing a year with injury and most people thinking he was done as a real contender, and in his swan song beats all the young guns. What an unbelievable story that would be and how awesome for our sport. Now let's say he's coming down the finishing stretch and as he does he raises his arms in glory to all of the cheering fans. But those suits are tight - it's certainly not impossible to think that as he did that, his zipper comes undone and even the little end pops out from the other side at the last second before he crosses the line. No fault of his own - his sponsor sent him this kit at the last minute (as they did with his suit the other day at PTO) and he hadn't raced in it before and the zipper wasn't made just quite right. He's DQ'd and forever will show as DSQ in his final race. You think you'd be good with that? You think that's a good look for the sport? Being this is the defining race in our sport, It would no doubt be a rare case where triathlon makes a splash in the national news, and we would be the laughing stock of the sports world. I'm guessing all you sticklers would say he should have known better than to have lifted his arms like that with a suit he had never worn before.
I'm glad to answer that question. As I've said in this post and my one about the torso rule, I find it infuriating, because I think it's a ridiculous rule and I think the fact that it is enforced reflects horribly on a sport I love and have been doing since 1985 when we all raced shirtless and in little Speedos even in the most conservative parts of the country and I'm guessing the world and nobody cared.
Let me present a hypothetical that given this rule doesn't even seem that far-fetched to me. Let's say Jan Frodeno comes back and wins the World Championship this fall at the age of 42 after missing a year with injury and most people thinking he was done as a real contender, and in his swan song beats all the young guns. What an unbelievable story that would be and how awesome for our sport. Now let's say he's coming down the finishing stretch and as he does he raises his arms in glory to all of the cheering fans. But those suits are tight - it's certainly not impossible to think that as he did that, his zipper comes undone and even the little end pops out from the other side at the last second before he crosses the line. No fault of his own - his sponsor sent him this kit at the last minute (as they did with his suit the other day at PTO) and he hadn't raced in it before and the zipper wasn't made just quite right. He's DQ'd and forever will show as DSQ in his final race. You think you'd be good with that? You think that's a good look for the sport? Being this is the defining race in our sport, It would no doubt be a rare case where triathlon makes a splash in the national news, and we would be the laughing stock of the sports world. I'm guessing all you sticklers would say he should have known better than to have lifted his arms like that with a suit he had never worn before.