Swimming for the blind has few differences with regard to conventional swimming. One of the factors that makes it different is the use of a touch signal to warn swimmers when to turn and when they are reaching the finish, to prevent the blind from striking the wall of the

The company allocates part of its resources to researching new technologies that improve people’s lives. After meeting with the Spanish Paralympic Committee, the idea arose for Blind Cap, a swim cap that incorporates vibrating technology to alert blind swimmers.

A vibration system, incorporated inside of the cap, replaces the tapping mechanism used until now with a small vibration that alerts swimmers of the precise time to turn. Connected to Gear S2 (a smartwatch), or to a smartphone via Bluetooth, coaches send a small vibration to the cap, to alert swimmers, just by pressing the button on the Blind Cap app.

A simple mechanism that—joined to company´s mobile technology—means a lot to swimmers and coaches, as it eliminates tapping the swimmer while maintaining the connection between them, something that is essential in this swimming discipline.

Before testing the Blind Cap and finishing its production process, we met with the Paralympic Committee to detail the needs and problems to resolve. Then we introduced the cap at elite swimmer training sessions in categories S11, S12 and S13 (for blind swimmers), for swimmers who will compete at the next Paralympic Games.

Blind Cap was presented to the Spanish Olympic and Paralympic Committees, which are excited and interested in the project, valuing the Blind Cap as one more step ahead in the world of Paralympic sports.

At this time, as it is not a commercial product, it is only used by the aforesaid coaches and swimmers at the facilities of the committee itself at which the elite athletes train and workout. The idea is for it to be introduced at professional competitions in the future, to replace tapping, and that it will be mass produced.

After showing and trying out the Blind Cap along with the Spanish Paralympic Committee, the committee expressed its interest in establishing the Blind Cap as its main tool at high-performance blind swimmer training sessions, as well as seeking to modify regulations in order to implement Blind Cap at national championships (for the time being).

Moreover, far from being a for-profit action, the brand's value has increased, revealing once again that it is concerned about improving people's lives through its technology.

Furthermore, the feeling of swimmers and coaches is extremely positive, as they see a future for this new model to alert the swimmer. They believe it is a great beginning, that one large step has been taken toward achieving optimal conditions in this swimming discipline.

The company creates technology to make people’s lives easier. Blind swimmers deserve to have technological advances contribute to their conditions to be able to perform as elite athletes without any obstacles. Thus, after holding several meetings with the Spanish Paralympic Committee, we realised that we had the mobile technology needed, and we only had to seek the way to apply it to this sport to eliminate the tapping signal used until now. Far from being a for-profit action, it has a social focus to make the lives of blind swimmers easier and to launch a clear message: the company makes technology for people and wants everyone to understand that these minority groups are also worthy of technological advances reaching their sector, being able to improve the conditions of their training sessions and—why not?—being able to become independent in the future.

Swimming for the blind has been established as a Paralympic sport for over 50 years. Blind swimmers need an alert to know the exact time to turn, as their disability prevents them from determining this on their own. To do so, over the course of all these years coaches have used a pole with a hard sponge on the end to warn swimmers, which is somewhat denigrating and rudimentary, when bearing in mind that we live in the age of technology.

We want to put an end to this practice. The company´s technology has simplified many daily problems, so why not help improve the daily lives of elite athletes, such as Paralympic blind swimmers?

The objective was to apply the brand’s mobile technology and the instruments required to improve these swimmers’ lives, eliminating the touch signal used until now and launching an appeal in favour of this type of sport.