text: SOCHI, Russia — When speedskating competition resumes Saturday, the U.S. team will be on the ice with a familiar but new look. 
   
   They're hoping their results are the same: familiar, but new for these Games. 
   
   “For the remainder of the Winter Olympic Games, Team USA speedskaters will be wearing the previously-approved Under Armour skin suits used during recent World Cup competition,” Mike Plant, president of US Speedskating, announced in a news release just before dawn Saturday in Sochi. 
   
   US Speedskating earlier sought approval from the International Skating Union and the International Olympic Committee to revert to the World Cup suits. By ISU rules, uniforms must be consistent throughout a team, so the new Mach 39 suits are out and the old suits are in for the remainder of the Games. 
   
   Pressure for the change built this week in the wake of a disastrous performance through six events by a team with high expectations. No U.S. speedskater has medaled, including the world's top-ranked skaters, Shani Davis and Heather Richardson. 
   
   The suit became the leading suspect for the poor showing. The suit is unproven apart from these Games and was introduced only last month. Richardson attempted to modify her suit this week. The results matched her teammates results: out of the metal. 
   
   US Speedskating chief executive Ted Morris earlier confirmed an application with the ISU was “in the process,” and its approval would make swapping the suits “an option.” But he said USS is evaluating everything — from athletes' training to their diets — in addition to Under Armour's suits. 
   
   “We don't think (the suits) are having any impact. But at the same time we want to make sure when our athletes get on that start line they have confidence and are ready to go,” Morris said late Friday after meeting with staff and 17 skaters. “That's priority number one.” 
   
   The Tribune reported Friday that federation officials were working to get clearance to race in suits that were worn during 28 World Cup medal victories. They also are from Under Armour, but the World Cup attire does not have the supposed benefits of the Mach 39's features. Many skaters brought their old suits with them to Sochi. 
   
   “We've performed well in the World Cup suits. I won a World Cup in that suit,” skater Joey Mantia said after practice Friday when asked if he preferred the older suits. “At least there's some kind of confidence there with that.” 
   
   The glaring lack of any Olympic medals from a program that has won 67 Winter Olympics medals — the most of any winter sport for the country — has thrown coaches into a frenzy searching for a way to salvage their Games. 
   
   The last time the U.S. failed to medal in speedskating? Sarajevo, 1984. 
   
   “We're scratching our heads to try to figure out a way to switch it up here with half the Games left,” Morris said. 
   
   Davis said Friday the hoopla over the suit would not distract him. After a tuneup in the 500 meters on Monday and disappointing eighth-place finish in the 1,000 on Wednesday, the South Side native is optimistic about his chances in the 1,500, likely his final individual Olympic race. 
   
   “Got to rebound from that 1,000. We still have it here,” Davis said Friday, smiling and smacking his chest. “So let's get it on!” 
   
   The Mach 39 suit — developed with defense contractor Lockheed Martin — was marketed as the fastest ever in the sport. But its design and materials remained tightly guarded, revealed only after the U.S. Olympic team was set in January. 
   
   Glenview's Brian Hansen, who finished 33rd in the 500 and ninth in the 1,000, said he was frustrated by not being able to try the suit beforehand. 
   
   “If the entire U.S. team is underperforming compared to our potential — literally everyone — you can only look at so many factors,” he said Thursday. “Is it the suit? Is it our preparation? The suit's the easiest thing to fix.” 
   
   Patrick Meek, who finished 20th in the 5,000, said he still believes the Mach 39 is the fastest. 
   
   “These guys make F-16 fighter jets,” he said. “If they can invade Afghanistan and Iraq, they can build a speedskating suit.” ||||| U.S. speedskater Shani Davis during the Olympic 1,000-meter race. European Pressphoto Agency 
   
   SOCHI, Russia—The U.S. speedskating team will drop its controversial Under Armour UA +2.48% Under Armour Inc. Cl A U.S.: NYSE $53.75 +1.30 +2.48% AFTER HOURS $53.25 -0.50 -0.93% P/E Ratio 69.81 Market Cap $11.20 Billion Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee $298,981 03/17/14 Under Armour Approves Stock Sp... 02/21/14 U.S. Speedskating Renews Under... 02/18/14 Sochi Olympics: How a Big Bet ... More quote details and news » UA in Your Value Your Change Short position suits for the rest of the Sochi Olympic Games, the national federation announced in the early hours of Saturday here, after several athletes complained that the suits were compromising their performance. 
   
   The skaters, who have struggled in Sochi, will revert to the Under Armour suits they wore during their more-successful World Cup events last fall. 
   
   After a disastrous outcome for heavily favored U.S. men and women speedskaters, a suspect has emerged: the high-tech Under Armour racing suits the team adopted for the Winter Olympics. Joshua Robinson reports from Sochi on Lunch Break. Photo: AP. 
   
   More Under Armour Shares Under Pressure 
   
   "Under Armour provided U.S. Speedskating with three different suit configurations in advance of Sochi, and we have full confidence in the performance benefits of each of them," U.S. Speedskating president Mike plant said in a statement. 
   
   The so-called Mach 39 suits, which Under Armour developed exclusively for the U.S. team in conjunction with Lockheed Martin LMT +1.30% Lockheed Martin Corp. U.S.: NYSE $159.44 +2.05 +1.30% AFTER HOURS $159.44 0.00 0.00% P/E Ratio 17.14 Market Cap $50.25 Billion Dividend Yield 3.34% Rev. per Employee $394,417 04/16/14 F-35 Fighter to Make Overseas ... 04/15/14 Taiwan Cuts Back Order for U.S... 04/03/14 SpaceX to Compete With Boeing-... More quote details and news » LMT in Your Value Your Change Short position engineers and billed as "the fastest speedskating suit in the world," had become a target of criticism this week from athletes after several U.S. medal contenders finished off the podium. 
   
   Kevin Haley, Under Armour's senior vice president of innovation, said Thursday that the company, which has sponsored the U.S. team since 2011, was confident that its suits were fast, but that in the absence of medal-winning performances, the company would "move heaven and earth to make them better." 
   
   Haley said late Friday the company was working hard to modify the Under Armour logo on the replacement uniforms to comply with International Olympic Committee regulations. The team said it had brought the older uniforms with them to Sochi. 
   
   After a tense two-hour meeting of team members and staff on Friday afternoon, U.S. Speedskating submitted simultaneous appeals to the IOC and the International Skating Union to be granted the option of changing back to their old suits as early as Saturday. 
   
   The main criticism from the skaters was that vents on the back of the suit, intended to let heat escape, were letting in air and making it harder for athletes to skate with proper form. Concerns over these design flaws were first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday. 
   
   The team has had the suits since Jan. 1 and tested them in simulated race conditions during their pre-Olympics camp. But the skaters had never worn them in competition before the Games. 
   
   An spokeswoman for the ISU said Friday that if the team wanted to switch to a suit that is identical to ones approved at the start of the skating season—and if every team member has access to one—the switch would be legal. Olympic protocol requires all members of a national speedskating team to compete in the same kind of suit. 
   
   U.S. Speedskating executive director Ted Morris said Friday that the team members were locked in a debate over which suit to wear going forward. He said the team's members were split evenly and no final decision had been reached. "The general feeling from the athletes, it's pretty darn close to 50-50," Morris said at the time. 
   
   Haley said the team ultimately decided to change the suits largely at the insistence of a minority of skaters on the team who are considered medal contenders. 
   
   The uniform swap puts Under Armour in a tough spot. If the U.S. team wins medals in the old suits, "it will be embarrassing for Under Armour," said Matt Powell, an industry analyst for SportsOneSource. Baltimore-based Under Armour Inc. is primarily known for its performance apparel. Shares of the company closed at $106 late Friday, down 2.38%. 
   
   Haley, the Under Armour executive, contested the notion that changing to the previous suits would harm the company's reputation. "They're all Under Armour suits," he said. "We just want the skaters to win." 
   
   In his statement, Plant said U.S. Speedskating was "proud of its long-term, successful partnership with Under Armour." 
   
   After six long-track events in Sochi, no U.S. skater has finished better than seventh. That includes gold-medal favorites Shani Davis and Heather Richardson, who dominated the World Cup circuit this season. 
   
   "Coming off one of the stronger fall seasons, of course we were expecting to take home a bunch of medals, lots of hardware," Kip Carpenter, a coach with the U.S. team, said. 
   
   Questions around the suit began to surface on Wednesday after Davis finished eighth in the 1,000 meters, an event he won at the 2006 and 2010 Olympics. This season, wearing the previous suit, Davis claimed the top spot in three of four World Cup events over that distance. 
   
   Some skaters requested fixes to the Mach 39 suit from Under Armour's seamstress in Sochi. By the time Richardson competed in the women's 1,000, the controversial vent on her suit had been covered up with a rubber patch. Even with the change, she finished seventh. 
   
   During Friday's meeting, members of the squad were focused on identifying solutions for turning around their Games. Morris said it was one part of a continuing discussion, which has also highlighted potential issues with race tactics, skate blades and a decision to train at altitude before traveling to Sochi, which sits at sea level. 
   
   On Friday morning, several skaters refused to place the blame on the suits. Patrick Meek, who worked closely with Under Armour and Lockheed Martin throughout the development process, stood by the two companies' design. "These guys make F-16 fighter jets," Meek said. "If they can invade Afghanistan, they can build a speedskating suit." 
   
   Carpenter, meanwhile, said he didn't believe changing the suits would solve everything. "It's ridiculous to think we're slowing down a second and a half because of a skinsuit." 
   
   At a morning practice session Friday, Davis said he would feel confident going into Saturday's 1,500 no matter what he was wearing. "Suit or no suit, I'm going to try to go out there and try to win." 
   
   Write to Joshua Robinson at joshua.robinson@wsj.com and Sara Germano at sara.germano@wsj.com
target: – The US speedskating team is still without a medal after an awful start in Sochi, and the squad hopes it can turn things around by changing suits. The team has officially sought permission from the Olympic powers-that-be to ditch their fancy "Mach 39" suits made by Under Armour and revert to older suits when competition resumes tomorrow, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Mach 39 suits, never before used in competition, were supposed to have a whiz-bang design that would boost speeds, but now many think they're actually slowing the skaters down, reports the Chicago Tribune. The blame-the-suit sentiment apparently isn't unanimous among team members, but if the switch is made, all members would have to abide. The official word from US Speedskating chief Ted Morris avoids blaming Under Armour but suggests the issue is in skaters' heads: “We don’t think (the suits) are having any impact but at the same time we want to make sure when our athletes get on that start line they have confidence and are ready to go." Under Armour, meanwhile, can at least take solace in that it also makes the older suits.