# Next Olympic sport -- fashion modeling **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 12, 2012, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992 "2012-07-12T12:41:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2012, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/1 "2012-07-12T12:41:57Z")
[Every athlete a fashion model!](http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/team-usa-decked-uniforms-made-china-010545973--abc-news-topstories.html) Interesting that the American uniforms for the opening ceremonies of the London Olympics are all made offshore, but with prices that would make you think they’re handmade by CEOs over their lunch hour. > [@](#): > > Here’s how much the uniforms cost: > Men: > Beret - $55 > Tie - $125 > Belt - $85 > Shirt - $425 > Blazer - $795 > Trousers - $295 > Shoes - $165 > > Women: > Beret - $55 > Scarf - $58 > Belt - $85 > Shirt - $179 > Skirt - $498 > Blazer - $598 That’s $1945 for the men’s outfits, and the bargain price of $1473 for women, times I don’t know how many hundred athletes at the summer games. Also, I guess our athletes will be going commando during the opening ceremonies, as underwear isn’t included. And I guess there will be a whole different set of clothes for the closing ceremonies, as the article specifies these are for the opening. Og forbid they wear the same suit twice. ---
**Author:** ![carlotta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@carlotta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlotta)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2012, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/2 "2012-07-12T13:13:08Z")
Ugh! I know Olympic athletes are elite but should they look like they all went to New England prep schools? ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/3 "2012-07-13T07:26:44Z")
Berets? Seriously? ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/4 "2012-07-13T07:32:44Z")
I see Team Australia are going for the ‘[middle-aged tennis umpire](http://london2012.olympics.com.au/news/image-galleries/media/0ED719F0-98C6-11E1-8AEC005056A302E2)’ look (scroll to images at bottom) Oh crikey, just found [Team GB](http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/133498), looking like a pack of cubicle pen pushers. But Jamaica, WOW! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/5 "2012-07-13T11:01:42Z")
Oh man. The second one has a link to the Spanish uniforms. I thought “uh, weird swirls… where the heck did that motif come from?” Russia. Russia? :smack: OK, anybody complaining about the colors needs to see a proctologist about that case of craniorectal inversion (red, yellow and navy are Our Usual), but WTF? Russians? Of course the motifs look weird! About as weird as babuschka dresses by Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, duh. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/6 "2012-07-13T11:06:52Z")
You’d think Spain could’ve found some real people to model the outfits. I see Air New Zealand will be leading the All Blacks into the stadium. Quite like Germany’s Space 999 outfits. ---
**Author:** ![ASanders](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asanders/32/3367_2.png) [@ASanders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASanders)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/7 "2012-07-13T11:19:34Z")
I think all the teams wearing blazers look like flight attendants. Yuck! ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/8 "2012-07-13T11:23:32Z")
And I think we can all take a big yawn at Italy’s contribution. ‘Oh, a tracksuit! Who’d a thunk it?’ ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/9 "2012-07-13T11:43:56Z")
> [@ASanders](#): > > I think all the teams wearing blazers look like flight attendants. Yuck! That was my first thought - the USA uniform looks like British Airways. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/10 "2012-07-13T12:08:28Z")
I think everyone should have been in jumpsuits. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/11 "2012-07-13T12:14:48Z")
Or naked and oiled. ---
**Author:** ![carlotta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@carlotta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlotta)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/12 "2012-07-13T12:36:56Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > That was my first thought - the USA uniform looks like British Airways. More like Air France! ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/13 "2012-07-13T13:22:23Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Or naked and oiled. At least the Greeks. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/14 "2012-07-13T13:23:57Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > And I think we can all take a big yawn at Italy’s contribution. ‘Oh, a tracksuit! Who’d a thunk it?’ Tony Soprano ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/15 "2012-07-13T14:31:52Z")
Who designed the funny caps that the US Team is wearing? They look similar to those worn by hurdy-gurdy monkeys.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/16 "2012-07-13T15:05:41Z")
> [@ASanders](#): > > I think all the teams wearing blazers look like flight attendants. Yuck! A lot of them do, yes. But even by that standard, the U.S. uniform really looks terrible. It’s just a ridiculous, flight attendant-y, A&F catalogue style. The Jamaican uniform is very loud but I think I could come to like it, and the Russian and Spanish ones at least look interesting. > [@SanVito](#): > > And I think we can all take a big yawn at Italy’s contribution. ‘Oh, a tracksuit! Who’d a thunk it?’ However the glue-on chest hair sticking out of the top makes for a nice accessory. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/17 "2012-07-13T15:27:19Z")
[Great Britain’s athletes wear.](http://answers.bettor.com/images/Articles/thumbs/extralarge/Stella-McCartney-designed-Team-GB-kit-released-London-Olympics-2012-139701.jpg) Red knee socks on the guys? Am I missing something here? Is knee socks on guys a new thing? I see that most of the uniforms are designed by famous designers - that explains a lot. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/18 "2012-07-13T15:57:48Z")
Maybe the designer is a big fan of Richmal Crompton’s Just William… ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/19 "2012-07-13T16:11:56Z")
[Team Canada’s take](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/sports-video/video-look-good-run-faster-canadas-track-team-unveils-new-uniforms/article4404255/?cmpid=rss1) on uniforms. Correct me if I’m wrong, but weren’t the US uniforms a corporate donation-in-kind from Ralph Lauren? As such, I don’t think it matters what they cost, as it wasn’t a cost incurred by the taxpayer, but by Ralph Lauren. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992/20 "2012-07-13T16:37:06Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > [Team Canada’s take](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/sports-video/video-look-good-run-faster-canadas-track-team-unveils-new-uniforms/article4404255/?cmpid=rss1) on uniforms. > > Correct me if I’m wrong, but weren’t the US uniforms a corporate donation-in-kind from Ralph Lauren? As such, I don’t think it matters what they cost, as it wasn’t a cost incurred by the taxpayer, but by Ralph Lauren. My guess is they are getting a hefty tax deduction for this donation. Made bigger by the heft price tags they’ve attached to every item. If I’m right, the American taxpayer is paying part of the cost. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/next-olympic-sport-fashion-modeling/627992.md?page=2)