After American sportswear brand Nike unveiled its apparel for this summer’s Olympics, female athletes say Team USA’s women’s track and field uniforms are unnecessary and sexist.
Images released Thursday of a model’s women’s suit showed a very high panty line, sparking criticism from several athletes who felt the decision prioritized thinness over functionality.
“They are definitely not made for show,” U.S. show jumping competitor Colleen Quigley said in a message to Reuters.
Lauren Fleshman, the 2006 and 2010 U.S. 5,000-meter national champion, voiced harsher criticism in an Instagram post, writing: “Sorry but please show me a WNBA or NWSL team Teams will enthusiastically support this jersey. This is an Olympic track and field event. Professional athletes should be able to compete without having to use up their brain space for constant vigilance of the nether regions or the mental gymnastics of displaying every vulnerable part of the body. Women’s equipment should serve For mental and physical performance. If the suit was really good for physical performance, men would wear it.”
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She added: “This is not an elite athletics kit. This is a piece of clothing produced by patriarchal forces that is no longer popular and no longer needed to attract the attention of women’s sports. … Stop changing the lives of half the population. Got harder @nike @teamusa @usatf.”
American Tara Davis-Woodhall, who finished sixth in the long jump at the Tokyo Olympics and won silver at last year’s world championships, reacted with a mix of humor and horror, commenting: ” Wait, my hooha is going out.”
Debate over whether female Olympians’ clothing is more revealing has raged for years in sports ranging from beach volleyball to gymnastics, and some competition attire rules are changing.
The German women’s gymnastics team wore leotards at the Tokyo Olympics in what they said was a stance against sexualization in the sport. Gymnastics New Zealand last week updated its clothing rules to allow women and girls to wear shorts or tights over leotards.
Nike said in an email to Reuters that it will provide athletes at this Olympics with tights options, including briefs and shorts, while only briefs will be available at the Tokyo Games.
Nike’s men’s and women’s track and field kits include nearly 50 pieces of clothing and 12 event-specific competition styles, Nike said at the time of the apparel launch.
Nike-sponsored pole vaulter Katie Moon posted on And she prefers briefs to shorts.
“Athlete selection and selection are the driving forces behind USA Track and Field’s planning process with Nike,” a spokesperson for USA Track and Field said.
At the launch event in Paris, athletes including American middle-distance runner Athing Mu and American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson wore Nike Olympic uniforms. Mu wore briefs, while Richardson wore a matching shorts suit.
Quigley said Nike should also provide its athletes with customized jerseys to ensure a perfect fit.
“Our bodies are all different and it seems foolish to expect us to compete at the highest level of sport without the appropriate uniforms,” she said.
Nike told Reuters it would provide tailoring services to Olympic and Paralympic athletes this year.
