In 1932, Swede Arne Borg became the first swimmer to earn an Olympic Gold Medal in a Speedo suit. However, it wasn't until 1956 that Speedo made its biggest splash. The Australian team, led by legends John Devitt and Dawn Fraser, dominated the Melbourne Olympics, so much so that other nations joked that there must have been a motor in their Speedo suits. To date, more Olympic Gold Medals have been won in Speedo than any other athletic apparel brand.

Supporting sporting heroes and their coaches has always been important to Speedo America, as well. In fact, we were the first to sign a swimmer to an endorsement sponsorship—Olympic gold medallist Donna de Varona, in the 1960s. Since then, the top names in swimming have competed in Speedo, including John Naber, Rowdy Gaines, Janet Evans, Summer Sanders, Lenny Krayzelburg and Jenny Thompson.

The current decade of swimming has been dominated by Michael Phelps, who has worked with Speedo since 2001. Thus far, Michael has earned 8 Olympic Medals and 17 World Championships. NBC calls him "the greatest swimmer of all time." Plus, ESPN said he gave "the greatest swimming performance of all time" while earning 7 gold medals and 5 world records at the 2007 FINA World Championships.

Additionally, the top female swimming stars – Natalie Coughlin and Amanda Beard – have competed in Speedo. The Cal-Berkeley star Coughlin earned more Olympic medals (5) at one Games than any other American female in history. Meanwhile, Amanda has transcended her 7 Olympic medals into a fashion and TV career.

From the pool to the land, Speedo is also proud to work with the winningest beach volleyball players of all time – Karch Kiraly and Holly McPeak. Today, 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh leads an elite team whose focus is grabbing gold in Beijing.