Physiological effects of a new racing suit for elite cross country skiers.

Aim: The aim of this paper was to investigate the influence of the new cross country racing suit, designed for the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver 2010, on cardio-respiratory, thermoregulatory and perceptual responses.
Methods: Six elite cross country skiers (29±6 years, peak oxygen uptake 73.2±6.9 mL·min-1·kg-1) performed two exercise bouts wearing either the 2009 or the 2010 racing suit. Bouts consisted of incremental testing on roller skis (12 km·h-1 at 5° inclination; 11 km·h-1 at 6° inclination and 12 km·h-1at 8° inclination for six minutes).
Results: During increasing intensities, significantly lower values were found for oxygen uptake, minute ventilation, RER and heart rate when wearing the new suit compared to the old one (P<0.05; effect sizes: 0.21-4.00). Core temperature was lower with the new suit during steps 2 and 3 (P<0.05, effect size: 1.22-1.27). Also, mean skin temperature was lower during the last increment (P<0.05, effect size: 0.87).
Conclusion: The new 2010 racing suit, developed specifically for the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver 2010, demonstrated lower values for oxygen uptake, minute ventilation, heart rate, skin and core temperature, ratings of thermal and sweat sensation when compared to the 2009 racing suit.