February 9, 2018

From Fringe to Baby Oil, Here Are 9 Eye-Catching Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony Looks

The displays did not disappoint.

US Olympic luge veteran Erin Hamlin carries the US flag at the 2018 opening ceremony.Mark Reis via ZUMA Wire

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Fashion Week kicked off in New York City on Thursday, but nearly 7,000 miles away in Pyeongchang, almost 3,000 Olympic athletes from 92 countries were preparing for a fashion show of their own. Cue the 2018 Olympics Parade of Nations, a highlight of the opening ceremonies in which athletes marched wearing international couture, their countries’ respective flags held high.

Replete with a rainbow of puffy parkas, the South Korean stadium became a personal runway for the Olympians. Some outfits screamed fashion, while others elicited storms of online snark. We’ve brought you the good, the bad, and the body-oiled below. 

The American team stepped out in uniforms designed by Ralph Lauren, whose brand is famous for its all-American aesthetic. Although the team’s opening ceremony outfits were unveiled in January, social media exploded with commentary on Friday, when the athletes took to the stadium.

Twitter users compared the athletes’ workman-style gloves to looks from Dumb and Dumber, Marvel’s Doctor Strange, and falconers. 

David Lauren, chief innovation officer for Ralph Lauren, said the design combines “fashion and function” that also “celebrates the American spirit.”

These guys seemed to enjoy them:

An athlete from team USA points during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics

Clive Mason/Pool Photo via AP

The Nigerian team wore my personal favorite ensemble—crisp, green-and-white blazers.

Athletes of Nigeria enter the stadium during the opening ceremony.

Kyodo via AP Images

Slovenia’s team was decked out nearly head-to-toe in a shade that calls to mind bright lime highlighters. Their athletic ensembles were designed by Chinese sportswear company PEAK, which also created the uniforms for Teams Brazil, New Zealand, Iceland, Ukraine, and Romania.

Cross-country skier Vesna Fabjan of Slovenia carries the national flag during the Parade of Nations.

Sharifulin Valery/TASS via ZUMA Press

Several other teams decided to go green this year. Here’s Bulgaria…

Bulgarian athletes march in the Parade of Nations.

Ulrik Pedersen/CSM via ZUMA Wire

…and Jamaica.

Jamaica’s team enters the stadium at the opening ceremony.

Michael Kappeler/DPA via ZUMA Press

Australia’s dark teal snow pants make for a nicely-rounded color scheme.

Snowboarder Scotty James of Australia carries the national flag during the Parade of Nations.

Sharifulin Valery/TASS via ZUMA Press

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan came through in a baby blue ombre.

Delegation from Kazakhstan takes part in the Parade of Nations.

Sharifulin Valery/TASS via ZUMA Press

Notably absent of color were the outfits of the Olympic Athletes of Russia—not to be confused with the Russian team, which was barred from the Games by the International Olympic Committee in December. Instead, they wore “neutral” uniforms designed by Anastasia Zadorina, who launched her ZA Sport line in 2012.

Participants from Russia during the opening ceremony.

Petter Arvidson/Bildbyran via ZUMA Press

Tonga’s flag-bearer did the most with the least. 

Pita Taufatofua from Tonga carries his country’s flag into the stadium at the opening ceremony.

Daniel Karmann/DPA via ZUMA Press

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

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