USA athletes slam Nike over skimpy Olympic uniform
Nike has been heavily criticised after unveiling the uniforms for Team USA track and field athletes for the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris.
The global sports apparel giant has been accused of sexism following the unveiling in Paris on Thursday, with a high-cut unitard revealed as the new women’s track and field team uniform.
The track and field kits were revealed alongside the basketball, soccer and skateboarding as part of the overall release for Team USA, leaving many questioning whether there was any input from female athletes during the design process.
Nike reportedly used body scanning and motion capture technology when designing the uniforms, insisting that athletes were brought in throughout the process for testing.
Speaking to CBS Sports, Vice President of Apparel Innovation for Nike, Janett Nichol, defended the uniform’s design and said the uniform’s “perform at the highest level” with athletes brought in to test the kits throughout the process.
“On the apparel side, why it’s a game-changer for us, is because we’ve now been able to take athlete insights, along with data, and use the algorithm to create something that allows us to get a level of specificity, fidelity, and accuracy that we’ve never been able to do before,” Nichol said.
Despite the uniforms being scientifically designed for athletes to be able to “perform at the highest level”, the main points of criticism include the kit’s revealing nature, body image concerns and potential mishaps during races.
“This is clearly a joke… I’m someone’s mum, I can’t be exposing myself in such ways. Where are the shorts?!” 100m Paralympic sprinter Femita Ayanbeku wrote on Instagram.
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