# Spandex weightlifting uniforms = Olympic-sized "Glamour Don't"!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [August 26, 2004, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569 "2004-08-26T06:05:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569/1 "2004-08-26T06:05:43Z")

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Whoever decided that new spandex uniforms for the Olympic weighlifters was a fashion improvement was woefully mistaken. What works for a toned, leggy female springboard diver doesn’t necessarily work for a hairy, potbellied brute with a neck as thick as her waist. Please guys, go back to the baggy t-shirts. My eyes! My eyes!

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**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569/2 "2004-08-26T16:37:08Z")

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Hmm…not sure about the oly clothes, but I know there are bench shirts and squat suits that can help a lifter pack extra pounds on the bar and still succeed. If something like that exists, fashion concerns become secondary.

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**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569/3 "2004-08-26T18:08:36Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> …back to the baggy t-shirts.

Back? Olympic weightliofters have always worn tightfitting garb – not as shiny as Nylon/Spandex, but definitely tight. I remember Alexei Alexeyev (sp?), his huge belly straining against the restraint of his outfit…

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2004, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spandex-weightlifting-uniforms-olympic-sized-glamour-dont/261569/4 "2004-08-26T18:44:03Z")

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They don’t wear them for fashion, but for function, as others have said. I’m pretty sure they know what they look like.