Fiona Fairhurst

Fiona Fairhurst is the inventor of the Speedo Fastskin swimsuit. She designs clothing for sport. She was nominated for the European Inventor of the Year award in 2009, in the Industry category.

Fairhurst studied MSc textile technology at the University of Huddersfield, BA (Hons) at Leeds University and an MA at Central St Martins London. Since 2004 she is a Design Director consultancy 0.01.

Fairhurst was inspired by the dermal denticle structure of the skin of sharks. She spent a day in the Natural History Museum examining the skin of a shark under a microscope, to create the Fastskin fabric.