The U.S. Olympic swimming trials concluded over the weekend and spectators saw a lot of records fall in the qualifier. Nine world records fell in the eight-day competition.

That’s an amazing statistic to consider and one wonders whether those records would have been set without swimmers wearing the new Speedo LZR (pronounced laser) suit that was designed with the help of NASA.

The suit runs anywhere from $170 to upwards of $500 depending on the model and was created to reduce drag in the pool. Many have described it like a corset because it is so tight it seems to cinch the swimmer in. The suit has no seams and has polyurethane-coated panels that help to streamline the swimmer’s body so it moves better through the water by seperating the water from the swimmer.

The use of the suits has stirred a debate about the authenticity of the records being set. Italian coach Alberto Castagnetti has called the suit “technological doping.”

This sounds like arguments about golf technology when drivers became bigger and had larger sweet spots. But if every swimmer wears a LZR suit, presumably there is no real advantage. The records will likely go down quick in Beijing, but that’s part of what makes the games interesting. The attention to the suit has increased attention in the sport and that’s probably a good thing, because Michael Phelps has a chance to do something really special in these games.

The International Swimming Federation or FINA approved the suits and they hit the market in February. As far as the governing body of swimming is concerned, the suit is legal because it doesn’t increase buoyancy.

Some critics of the suit will argue that the records being set are cheapened because of the new suit, but swimmers and other athletes have always tried to gain an advantage in some form.

After all records are meant to be broken and the same argument can be made for every piece of equipment in any sport.

The records that are being set in the suits will probably have some purists believing they are not as noteworthy as the previous marks, but that shouldn’t take away from the legacy of the swimmers who set those marks before they were broken, it should only embolden them. The real worry comes when there is an athlete like Michael Phelps, who is already considered the best American swimmer, uses the suit. Will the records he sets be overshadowed by the fact he used the LZR suit to accomplish those marks? It’s a tough question but in the long term his legacy will likely be preserved, but in the short term it may be considered tainted by some.

The times of all swimmers will come down, but whoever has the best ability should prevail. The advantage the LZR gives swimmers probably isn’t going to make someone a world champion simply because they wore the LZR. The evidence is there that the LZR is giving swimmers an advantage, records are being broken by significantly better times, but if the majority of swimmers elect to use the suit, the playing field should be leveled and the great swimmers should come through.

The problem comes if multiple people break an old record and even then the new record and record breakers are given their own place in history.

Arguments over records are part of sport, something that can be entertaining. People still argue that Babe Ruth should own the home run record because he did it in fewer games than Maris did. Arguments over swimmers who used the LZR and those who didn’t will hopefully follow the same path.

What will interesting is whether younger swimmers begin to use the LZR suit or something comparable when other swimwear designers catch up to Speedo, but in the short term it seems the suit will have little effect in high school and colleges.