Missy Franklin
FASHION
Speedo USA Introducing New Line Designed with Olympian Missy Franklin
As if gearing up for the 2016 Olympic Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro weren't enough, five-time Olympic medalist Missy Franklin worked with Speedo USA to create the Missy Franklin Signature Series of performance suits for women and girls.
The new collection will debut at the end of 2016 with one and two-pieces that will be made of durable, chlorine-resistant fabric on the outside and the inside. One of Franklin's mottos, "With strength and dignity...," will be inscribed on the suits' grippers around the leg openings and on the underside of the bottom band of the two-piece tops.
At Speedo USA's headquarters in Cypress, Calif., and Franklin's hometown of Denver, Colo., the Speedo team worked on coming up with shapes, cuts, fit, colors and patterns to develop the final collection that will retail for $69 for one pieces and $24 to $34 for tops or bottoms of two-piece separates.
The 6-foot-2 swimmer joined Team Speedo last year as a brand ambassador. It was her first endorsement since becoming a professional athlete in March 2015.
Franklin, 21, has medaled five times and won gold in four events at the 2012 Olympic Games in London at age 17, setting a world record in the 200-meter backstroke and breaking the American record in the 100-meter backstroke.
She won gold and broke the world record as part of the 4x100-meter medley relay team and also won bronze as part of the 400-meter free relay team.
In 2013, Franklin became the most-decorated female swimmer in history at a single World Championships, winning six gold medals at the event in Barcelona. In 2015, as a member of the University of California, Berkeley, women’s swim team, she won three NCAA individual titles and set the American record in the 200-yard freestyle.
