PACIFICA, Calif. — Some swimmers at a meet here this year stood atop the racing blocks in high-tech, shoulder-to-knee suits like those worn by Olympians. The suits, which can cost as much as $500, are believed to increase speed by 1 to 2 percent for mature athletes.

The swimmers in this meet were novices. On one 8-year-old girl, the fabric hung as loosely as the skin of a Shar Pei, visibly negating any explicit hydrodynamic benefits of the advanced technology that went into the design of the suits.

Fashioned to prevent drag in the water, the suits are creating a lot of friction on pool decks wherever two or more age-groupers are gathered. The proliferation of expensive gear with dubious advantages has created anxiety over the future of the sport, raising questions about elitism and whether the youngest participants are being taught that success can be bought.

The suits have pitted parents who have the financial wherewithal and unswerving determination to give their children every competitive edge against other adults involved in the sport who fervently believe that the focus for preteens should be on fun and skill development, not performance.