A Round-Up To The Most Fashionable Olympics
Fashion's most iconic city has proven itself beyond being just a fashion hub since June 26 this year, when it welcomed the 2024 Olympics. Undoubtedly, this year's games stand out as the most stylish yet. While London had its memorable moments with supermodels and Team GB sporting Stella McCartney-designed Adidas kits, Paris has truly thrived with various brand engagements after 12 years.
The spotlight this year was on Paris-based LVMH, as the conglomerate became the creative partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. In this role, LVMH ensured that its top brands were prominently featured, blending the city's savoir-faire with top-tier sportsmanship. Notably, the medals were crafted by Chaumet - with fragments of the Eiffel Towel - and presented on custom Louis Vuitton trays. From Berluti designing the athlete’s suits for this year’s games to Christian Dior curating international athletes as brand ambassadors, this year’s Olympics have been all about fashion. And we expected nothing less.
So this week, we highlighted the standout style moments from the Olympics and Paralympics, showcasing the peak of the fashion and sports relationship - along with a trend we believe is here to stay: sports and fashion as one.
The Olympics Opening Ceremony was on the Friday night 26th June, showcasing the finest of French fashion. Alongside renowned designers, a few emerging talents captured the spotlight. Among them was Jeanne Friot, a talented young French designer behind the remarkable Joan of Arc tribute.
When it came to outfitting the Opening Ceremony performers, Dior couture took the spotlight. The renowned fashion house provided stunning custom ensembles for Celine Dion and Lady Gaga, along with Axelle Saint-Cirel, Juliette Armanet, and Aya Nakamura, as well as their respective dancers.
Louis Vuitton also made a significant impact on the 2024 Olympics. The French luxury brand designed the trunk that held the Olympic torch, showcased alongside menswear artistic director Pharrell. Moreover, the brand crafted all the medals in its jewellery collection and the trays used to present the medals, featuring Vuitton's iconic checked pattern.
Skims has collaborated with Team USA to create a range of underwear, T-shirts, swimsuits, and loungewear for the athletes to wear during the Games. The campaign features renowned athletes such as swimmer Caeleb Dresser, gymnast Sunisa Lee, and sprinter Gabby Thomas.
The athletes' official uniforms have been gradually revealed on social media over the two months of games, showcasing some notable highlights.
For instance, Labrum London's designs for Team Sierra Leone, a menswear favourite at LFW, were a collaboration with Adidas. Another independent fashion label, Left On Friday, has eagerly seized the opportunity to become an official Olympics outfitter. In fact, they dressed the Canadian volleyball team in stylish one-shouldered designs, adding a chic touch to their activewear and swimsuits. Sami Miro collaborated with Nike to create custom jackets for the US gymnastics team, and Stella Jean dressed Team Haiti with uniforms inspired by the work of Haitian painter Philippe Dodard. Another attention-grabbing uniform was designed by Michel & Amazonka for Team Mongolia. This sustainability-focused couture house crafted pieces inspired by traditional attire, incorporating ancient techniques. These outfits gained widespread attention for all the right reasons and quickly became viral sensations - and were our absolute favourite uniform design.
From Armani dressing team Italy and Ralph Lauren dressing team USA, the high fashion moments of this year’s Paris Olympics and Paralympics were a real high. But Paris didn’t only focus on fashion collaboration for the occasion, but lots of installations that highlighted both the beauty of the city and the lure of the sports.
For instance, the French artist Raphaël Zarka, in collaboration with architect Jean-Benoît Vétillard, designed a colourful skateable sculpture in the Piazza of Centre Pompidou, Paris just in time for the 2024 Olympic Games, and open for everyone’s use. Seine Design has also introduced Annette K, a floating swimming pool and wellness gym in Paris, France. A project that includes an Olympic-length swimming pool along with a sports, health, and wellness centre, coinciding with both the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Games.
Furthermore, the city has also hosted - and still is - an incredible amount of sports exhibitions for everyone to visit. From Palais Galliera’s ‘Fashion On The Move’ to ‘the Body In Motion’ at the Petit Palais and Konstantin Grcic's exhibition on the future of design and sport at Musée du Luxembourg, this is the time to visit the European capital.
[info sourced on elle.com, harpersbazaar.com, creativeboom.com; featured image sourced on canva.com]