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How fashion helps Olympics athletes compete at the highest level

Katie Ledecky competes in the Women's 800m Freestyle final on Day 4 of the TYR Pro Swim Series San Antonio at Northside Swim Center in San Antonio, Texas.
Katie Ledecky competes in the Women's 800m Freestyle final on Day 4 of the TYR Pro Swim Series San Antonio at Northside Swim Center in San Antonio, Texas.

This week, the fashion capital of the world becomes the sporting capital of the world with the Summer Olympics kicking off in Paris, France.

The world’s best athletes will be outfitted in premiere designstowhich not onlymake them look good, but alsohelp them tocompete at the highest levelspossible. Name brand sponsors dress the Games and the players head to toe.

Louis Vuitton designed special trunks to carry the medals. Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty created a designated makeup look for volunteers. Even the underwear athletes wear is provided to them – by Kim Kardashian’s company Skims. 

When Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky dives in the pool, she’ll be wearing a suit from apparel brand TYR, with lab-tested technology to make her glide as smoothly as possible. 

How does what athletes wear affect their performance? And how do designers take that into account when creating these kinds of specialized clothing?

Copyright 2024 WAMU 88.5

Avery Jessa Chapnick