As a design style, streamlining began to go out of fashion from the 1960s onwards. But scientific aerodynamics remained constantly evolving. A notable example of this can be found in sport. Nowadays, insights from aerodynamics or hydrodynamics are crucial to speed sports like swimming, cycling, skating, bobsledding and skiing.
The magic photo finish
Sport is the most inefficient form of efficiency. A huge amount of time and effort are invested in training and equipment, merely to get over the finishing line a fraction of a second quicker. The magic of speed, with which streamlined design once entered our lives, still exists in sport.
In the photofinish, and in replays of race footage, the very delay shows the speed of the athletes. These images are a practical means of determining the winner of a race. But they also feed our fascination with competitive sports.
Streamlining and aerodynamics
The streamlined style holds out the smooth, curved form as the one that ensures the lowest drag. But air and water react differently at varying speeds, altitudes and positions. Which means different forms are often required. This is illustrated by the aerodynamic skating suit. It is made from different types of fabric, some smooth, some rough, which are meant to guide the air in exactly the right direction.
Rules
Lots of sports have strict rules about how much assistance is permitted when reducing drag. To take an example, FINA – swimming’s governing body – does not allow competitors to wear swimsuits that help them in any way to increase their speed. This led to the banning of full-body swimwear after the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Several teams then wore LZR Racer swimsuits. which were inspired by sharkskin. They were suspected of giving swimmers an unfair advantage.
Cyclist Ellen van Dijk in action. Photo by Sam Needham.
More
Historical streamlining books
Much has been and continues to be written about streamlining, the design style as well as the scientific phenomenon. A selection of historical books by curator Tomas van den Heuvel.
Streamlined solar cars
Solar cars need to be as efficient as possible and are therefore completely streamlined. In this video, Luc Evertzen of Solar Team Twente tells you more about the importance of streamlining solar cars.
Streamlined athletes
Cyclist Ellen van Dijk is a seven-time world champion and set the world hour record in 2022. In this video, she elaborates on why streamlining is important to her.
Streamlined animals
In search of the ideal streamline, people often look to nature. But what are we actually talking about when we talk about streamlined animals?
Streamlining and aerodynamic drag
What is a streamline? And what is aerodynamic resistance or ‘drag’?
Future
In our present age of climate upheaval and fuel shortages, reducing air resistance is right back at the top of the design agenda.
Ideal
At its height, the streamlined design was accompanied by certain modern ideals.
Style
It was no coincidence that the streamlined look became so popular in the 1930s.
Icons
New, streamlined vehicles were frequently held out in advertisements as the future of transport. In this way, streamlined trains, cars, aeroplanes and boats assumed an iconic status.
Experiment
Many early experiments set out to compare forms in order to identify the perfect one.
Enchantment
For hundreds of years, a galloping horse was viewed as the epitome of speed. But this would change in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. New inventions like the train, the car and the aeroplane meant that speeds that once seemed fantastical were becoming increasingly possible. This new potential for progress had a huge…
Nature
Learning from nature can still be very useful when it comes to creating aerodynamic designs.
What exactly is streamlining?
The term “streamline” originates from science and engineering, but what is it?
