The innovative swim company, FINIS, impressed a 37-member jury of design experts with their new strapless Agility Paddles to receive the “red dot award: product design 2013”. The “red dot” is a coveted recognition for high design quality. The international jury only awards this sought-after seal of quality to products that set themselves apart significantly from comparable products because of excellent design. The jury members received 4,662 entries in 19 different categories in this year’s competition, and the Agility Paddles came out an award winner.
The international awards ceremony for the seal of quality will take place on July 1, 2013 as part of the traditional red dot gala. The ceremony – held in Essen’s opera house, the impressive Aalto Theatre – has become established as a celebratory ceremony with innovators, designers and guests attending from around the world. The Agility Paddles will be put on display at the ceremony and during a four-week special exhibition in the red dot design museum.
The strapless Agility Paddles help swimmers maintain proper fundamental hand placement during all four swim strokes. The convex design teaches proper palm positive hand position by encouraging the swimmer to have an early catch. The paddle will only remain in place if the swimmer maintains traction with the water, thus creating more propulsion and maximum efficiency.
Professor Dr. Peter Zec, initiator and CEO of the red dot, has pointed out that strong design competence and economic success go hand in hand: “The winners of the ‘red dot award: product design 2013’ are the protagonists of a highly developed design culture and design industry. These days it is becoming more and more difficult to distinguish between well-designed products. It is often only in the details that the special qualities become apparent. However, those product creations that pass the test before the critical eyes of the international red dot jury will not disappear into the crowd and will be able to fend off global competition.”
Mark Stephens, VP of Product Development at FINIS, commented on the special red dot recognition and said, “We are thrilled and excited that the Agility Paddles received the ‘red dot’ award. Our goal is to develop unique products with a keen design edge, and we had to make many versions of the Agility Paddles before we were content with the design. The ‘red dot’ is a recognition of our detailed efforts.”
Founded in 1993 in Northern California, FINIS was started by John Mix and Olympic Gold Medal Swimmer Pablo Morales. The Monofin and the Swimmer’s Snorkel were the first products they developed for the US market; afterwards, they continued to focus on creating training tools for swimmers and coaches worldwide. FINIS products are currently available in over 65 countries and are used by US and International Olympic teams, elite triathletes, and fitness swimmers.
Innovative research and design is FINIS’ highest priority. This dedication has resulted in truly unique products such as: the Swimmer’s Snorkel, which is recognized as the paramount tool to improve a swimmer’s technique, the SwiMP3 that uses bone conduction technology to transmit music to the inner ear instead of using ear buds, and the Z2 Zoomers fins, which demonstrate an intimate understanding of swimming musculature, hydrodynamics, and engineering.