Nike’s Team USA women’s athletics uniform is needlessly revealing and sexist, female athletes said after the US sportswear brand unveiled its outfits for this summer’s Olympics.
Images made public Thursday of the women’s uniform on a mannequin, showing a very high-cut panty line, sparked criticism from several athletes for what they saw as a decision to prioritize thinness over function.
“They are absolutely not built for performance,” American striker Colleen Quigley said in a message to Reuters.
Lauren Fleshman, the 2006 and 2010 U.S. national 5,000-meter champion, shared even sharper criticism in an Instagram post: to write, “I’m sorry, but show me a WNBA or NWSL team that would enthusiastically support this uniform. This is for Olympic athletics. Professional athletes should be able to compete without devoting brain space to constant pubic vigilance or the mental gymnastics that expose every vulnerable part of your body. Women’s kits should serve performance, both mental and physical. If this outfit were truly beneficial for physical performance, men would wear it.”
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She added: “This is not elite track and field uniform. This is a costume born from patriarchal forces that are no longer welcome or necessary to showcase women’s sports. … Stop making it harder for half the population @nike @teamusa @usatf.”
Tara Davis-Woodhall, an American who finished sixth in the long jump at the Tokyo Games and took silver at the world championships last year, reacted with equal parts humor and horror, saying, “Wait, my hoo haa is coming out.”
More revealing outfits for female Olympians in disciplines from beach volleyball to gymnastics have been debated for years, and some rules about competition clothing are changing.
The German women’s gymnastics team wore long bodysuits at the Tokyo Olympics in what they said was a stand against sexualization in the sport. Gymnastics New Zealand last week updated the dress code allows women and girls to wear shorts or leggings over their tights.
Nike said in an email to Reuters that it was offering athletes unitard options with both shorts and shorts for these Olympics, while only offering the brief for the Tokyo Olympics.
Nike’s athletic uniforms for men and women include nearly 50 garments and 12 competition styles for specific events, the brand said at the launch of the outfits.
Nike-sponsored pole vaulter Katie Moon said in a post on trousers.
A spokesperson for USA Track & Field said, “Athletes’ options and choices were the driving force for USATF in the planning process with Nike.”
American middle-distance runner Athing Mu and American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson were among the athletes modeling Nike’s Olympic kits at the launch show in Paris. While Mu wore briefs, Richardson wore a version of the outfit with shorts.
Quigley said Nike should also offer athletes customization for the team to ensure the uniform fits perfectly.
“Our bodies are all different and it seems foolish to expect us to compete at the highest level of our sport without a properly fitting uniform,” she said.
Nike told Reuters it will have tailors available for Olympic and Paralympic athletes this year.