Appropriate Attire - comparing Olympic sports to ours

[Velvet]

Okay, here’s the thing I wonder. In dressage, many people are advocating for changes in show attire. They say we are athletes and should dress appropriately. I have to wonder about the definitions of appropriate based on other sports.

The leotards on female gymnasts that leave NOTHING (crotch-wise) to the imagination are supposedly appropriate for the sport. Why is it necessary to be cut that high?

Why do women beach volleyball players go almost naked? (It started to get attention for their sport, i just can’t fathom any reason a rule forcing them all to go so skimpy is necessary, but at least they are adults.)

So, what would be more appropriate for equestrian events that is different than what we now all wear in the ring?

[J-Lu]

Seriously, Velvet?

I bet you have never tumbled or did gymnastics, and therefore have no idea how the cut of the uniform is useful to the performance. Try talking to a gymnast. Should athletes dress for the camera rather than for their sport? Should male swimmers not wear speedo-type or other tight suits to make you feel comfortable looking at “their package” even though these suits help them win?

It’s pretty clear why dressage riders wear what they wear. Just like people who fence, do wrestling, do basketball. There is history and functionality. Who is “we”;are you riding at the Olympic level? These riders are riding in wonderfully technical garb these days. If only I could afford their wardrobe or their carefully-fitted and beautiful tack.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Boots and riding pants are pretty appropriate and functional attire.
Shadbelly and jackets, not really, but are a nod to tradition.
It wouldn’t bother me if they lost the jackets and decided to compete in polo shirts or fleeces. That’s what most people ride in everyday.

[Velvet]

I get that, but I also wonder if we shouldn’t have to dress up more for shows. I mean, gymnasts wear less shiny and sparkly clothes for everyday. What then would be different for us?

[Halt_Near_X]

[QUOTE=Velvet;8793444]
I get that, but I also wonder if we shouldn’t have to dress up more for shows. I mean, gymnasts wear less shiny and sparkly clothes for everyday. What then would be different for us?[/QUOTE]

Presumably, the rules would be similar to USEF’s rules when jackets are waived: no pink sparkly unicorn tshirts, no neon green sports bras, etc. People would still meet a certain standard of dress. Changing the standards doesn’t mean there would be no standards at all.

[AffirmedHope]

Idk I wouldn’t complain if they allowed major bedazzling of the jackets and stuff like the leotards were this year. I love me some sparkly shiny!

[Albion]

[QUOTE=Velvet;8793415]
The leotards on female gymnasts that leave NOTHING (crotch-wise) to the imagination are supposedly appropriate for the sport. Why is it necessary to be cut that high? [/QUOTE]

Beyond issues of performance, there’s a practical scoring reason for the high cut legs: it helps emphasize the length of line and/or provide an optical illusion that makes gymnasts’ legs look longer than they actually are. Same reason ballet dancers (generally) wear tights & shoes of the same color, and the reason dance leotards have also generally gotten a higher cut over the years. The shadbelly may add to a certain aesthetic that some people like, but dressage riders aren’t being judged on what their bodies look like while in motion in addition to what they can do; gymnasts are, to a certain extent.

[eclipse]

What Albian said plus leotards give a gymnast the freedom of movement that they need without any constriction… Please feel free Velvet to raise your leg above your head, or go into a handstand and then put your legs into a splits position and see if it’s better with or without a leotard like these girls wear LOL

When I trained I wore I leotard with very short shorts over the top or just a leotard as I preferred less constriction than tights that some wore!

[rjr]

[QUOTE=Velvet;8793444]
I get that, but I also wonder if we shouldn’t have to dress up more for shows. I mean, gymnasts wear less shiny and sparkly clothes for everyday. What then would be different for us?[/QUOTE]

Yes, but I don’t think that the gymnasts are less comfortable in their sparkly leotards than in their everyday leotartards. And I have noticed that in this Olympics the beach volley ball players actually did wear long sleeves at times when that was more appropriate for the weather. My shadbelly is not nearly as comfortable as my training outfit, and it is often NOT appropriate for the weather; yet I am not allowed/expected to alter it in order to be comfortable and function appropriately.

[PintoPony]

Female beach volleyball players aren’t required to wear bikinis during competition. They have the option to wear bikinis or body suits or shorts/top.

I looked it up a couple days ago after a work discussion on the tiny Olympic bikinis, lol

[js]

That could apply to dressage or jumping even outside the Olympics. We have often argued and discussed changes being made to the attire; something more like wearing a polo shirt and breeches or a lighter sport jacket. Many dressage riders see the shadbelly as a rite of passage, personally, I see them as distracting, especially when there is a breeze and the tails are blowing around. The fact that they are cut short in the front isn’t always flattering either.

I don’t for the most part like the top hat either. One of the eventing riders who is a very tall person also had a very tall top hat, looked kind of ridiculous. I would prefer that helmets were mandatory but there again most feel the top hat is a rite of passage.

As far as other sports, personally, I would prefer the beach bikini volleyball be played in a tank top not a bikini top but there again, that is their “standard” uniform regardless of where they are playing. I did think the women’s gymnastics uniforms were cut high around the thighs and butt. Not all the teams’ uniforms were like that but the USA’s sure were.

[Palm_Beach]

It’s not just sports, it’s just the way dress has evolved in many countries. It’s acceptable to go to school dressed in skimpier clothes than were worn to swim 50-100 years ago.

With the athletes, I’d watch to see how often they adjust their clothing to determine whether or not it’s the best thing to be wearing. If they are constantly tugging at their apparel, it’s probably not staying in place and bothering them with the displacement. Time for a new design.

[DownYonder]

But high cut leotards, etc., are not worn by the male gymnasts. Nor do the male beach volleyball players wear tiny little Speedos like the divers. Guessing they would be too restrictive for their man parts - not to mention the risk of an x-rated “wardrobe malfunction”.:lol:

[Velvet]

[QUOTE=PintoPony;8793542]
Female beach volleyball players aren’t required to wear bikinis during competition. They have the option to wear bikinis or body suits or shorts/top.

I looked it up a couple days ago after a work discussion on the tiny Olympic bikinis, lol[/QUOTE]

I’m guessing it has changed. I remember when it was first added that they were required to wear that outfit. I like that hey have options now!

[Velvet]

I agree that shadbelly’s are not the most flattering for a lot of people, and top hats are just passé. But I’m not sure what would be better. I’m not in love with the looks of the unstructured and lighter weight jackets that are hitting the jumper world. I think for jumping it’s less restrictive, but for dressage, it just looks sloppy.

[Guilherme]

[QUOTE=Velvet;8793415]
Okay, here’s the thing I wonder. In dressage, many people are advocating for changes in show attire. They say we are athletes and should dress appropriately. I have to wonder about the definitions of appropriate based on other sports.

The leotards on female gymnasts that leave NOTHING (crotch-wise) to the imagination are supposedly appropriate for the sport. Why is it necessary to be cut that high?

Why do women beach volleyball players go almost naked? (It started to get attention for their sport, i just can’t fathom any reason a rule forcing them all to go so skimpy is necessary, but at least they are adults.)

So, what would be more appropriate for equestrian events that is different than what we now all wear in the ring?[/QUOTE]

In the original Olympics athletes were naked. Unmarried women were not permitted to attend the games, but married women were. Go figure.

Why are beach volleyball athletes attired as they are? So that people will WATCH THEM!!! Ditto for virtually every other event where some measure of “prurient interest” is at play. And that’s a lot of them.

Equestrian sports and shooting sports are places where nobody is showing off their physique while competing. And they don’t exactly draw big crowds.

Sex still sells.

G.

[Palm_Beach]

Whoa, G, best trivia point ever!!!

[Albion]

[QUOTE=DownYonder;8793649]
But high cut leotards, etc., are not worn by the male gymnasts.[/QUOTE]

Male and female gymnasts aren’t judged on the same criteria. E.g. you don’t see “dance” moves from the men in the floor routine (the men don’t compete to music at all). There is much more emphasis on “artistry” in women’s gymnastics - think of how women move on beam. Men don’t need to emphasize length of line; women do.

Male dancers don’t wear high cut leotards either; doesn’t mean issues related to line aren’t important for female dancers and/or they’re doing it simply to titillate the audience.

[Kadenz]

At the NAJYRC in 2015 coats were waived and the riders wore team polo shirts. I think Canada’s were long-sleeve tech show shirts, but most were short-sleeve. They all looked classy and athletic and comfortable. I think our sport could ditch the coats and go that direction with no loss.

[Velvet]

Maybe at least for the Olympics? I mean, they’re NEVER going to simply waive jackets at an Olympic event. Maybe they could make the team shirts a part of the rules for the Olympics. I can’t recall the last time the summer Olympics have ever been cool.