Dubai, UAE - Swimming's ruling body FINA has agreed new standards for technical swimsuits that will be in place for this August's world championships in Rome.

The new guidelines for suit manufacturers announced in Dubai Saturday include that suits not be more than 1 millimetre in thickness or extend past the shoulders or ankles.

There is also a ban on individually tailored suits or swimmers wearing more than one technical suit at a time to take advantage of, for example, the sleekness of one suit and the buoyancy of another.

The new guidelines come as 108 world records were set in the last 12 months, leaving critics to say that swimming was becoming a technological rather than a sporting battle.

FINA intends installing its own supervision system to ensure the more strict design standards are adhered to, with yearly licences granted on August 1 of each year.

Any approved swimsuit must be commercially available a minimum of six months before a world championships or Olympics.

The current arrangement will run until the end of this year with far more significant rule tightening then expected in 2010. (dpa)