Even outside the insular world of aquatics, landlubbers are buzzing about this week's U.S. Olympic swimming trials in Omaha, Neb.

The intrigue is not so much about the swimmers, but the swimming suits. Specifically, Speedo's LZR Racer, which in February made perhaps the most splashy and controversial swimwear debut since the bikini.

"Technology is part of progress," U.S. head coach Mark Schubert said. "Certainly, the swimsuit technology over recent years has been astounding."

Forty-two of the 46 world records already broken this year are by swimmers donning $500 LZRs. Quantifying the suit's impact is difficult because Speedo is the sport's dominant manufacturer and Olympic years historically produce world-record spikes.

Rival suit-makers initially declared "no big deal," then questioned the LZR's legality. Then they scrambled to produce similar versions.

"When I hit the water, I feel like a rocket," said American Michael Phelps, the 23-time world-record holder.

"When I put it on, I feel like I'm some kind of action hero, ready to take on the world," said teammate Ryan Lochte, the world-record holder in the 200-meter backstroke.

The Beijing Olympics loom in six weeks. Non-Speedo-wearing swimmers around the world must decide whether to switch to the LZR, and risk losing sponsorship dollars -- or hope their company's version rivals Speedo's.

Speedo officials say the LZR reduces drag, muscle oscillation and skin vibration. Federation Internationale de Natation, swimming's sanctioning body, says LZR's fabrics are permissible because they do not provide buoyancy.

Arena, Adidas and Mizuno had their versions approved June 3. Other companies had to gain approval by yesterday. Some suits will debut in Omaha, while many swimmers will wear LZRs for the first time. All 1,212 swimmers in Omaha will be given the opportunity to use the LZR.

"Very exciting," said Southern Methodist University's Jennifer Blackman, one of the athletes who will get her LZR in Omaha. "I wish I could try it before."

She added: "I would say that wearing a different suit to race in trials would be like bringing a knife to a gunfight."

LZR suit seams are bonded ultrasonically and feature an internal "core stabilizer" that somewhat mimics a corset. The suits were tested for drag in NASA's wind tunnels.

Yes, swimming has come a long way since the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, when the Australians made the seemingly radical decision to shave their bodies. Advances have accelerated since body suits became the rage 15 years ago.

At the Japan Open in Tokyo three weeks ago, double-Olympic champion Kosuke Kitajima protested the Japan Swimming Federation's contractual ties to Mizuno, Descente and Asics by wearing a T-shirt bearing the words: "I am the swimmer."

Then he wore the LZR while winning the 200-meter breaststroke in 2:07.51, nearly a second below University of Texas product Brendan Hansen's two-year-old world record.

Two days later, the Japanese federation announced that its swimmers can compete in their suit of choice. The issue likely will boil into Beijing, with glowing testimonials countered by unfairness complaints.

Reigning 100 freestyle world champion Filippo Magnini of Italy contends that the LZR makes "mediocre swimmers suddenly become Martians."

What does the suit mean for the present and future of competitive swimming? Does technology cheapen the records, or is the current onslaught no different than another Olympic year, 2000, when 62 world records were set?

Schubert, the U.S. head coach, predicts that swimmers in Omaha and Beijing will choose various LZR styles and opposing company brands according to the stroke and distance they swim.

"Records are just a time, and it's a way to measure us with previous champions," he said.

"But let's face it. The swimsuit that Johnny Weissmuller wore [in the 1924 and'28 Olympics] and the swimsuit that Michael Phelps wears is going to be a lot different. It's difficult to measure generations by time. You have to measure generations by greatness and their accomplishments within that generation."