Mao Wenting
In the women’s big air freestyle skiing competition at this year’s Winter Olympics, Gu Ailing steadily completed an incredible 1620 move, winning the third gold medal for the Chinese sports delegation, which is also the first gold medal in women’s skiing.
The outstanding charm of ice and snow athletes such as Gu Ailing has attracted more and more people to fall in love with skiing.
Gu Ailing’s Anta “Golden Dragon Snow Suit”, the golden dragon pattern behind it is designed by herself.
As one of the seven Olympic disciplines, Olympic skiing consists of six disciplines: Alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, ski jumping, cross-country skiing and Nordic combined.
Skiing was an aristocratic sport in the first place. For those who enjoy flying into the alpine snow and enjoying a leisurely time, the ski slopes are also socialising. Especially in the thirties and forties of the last century, many Hollywood stars were keen on skiing, and fashion companies naturally noticed the business experience. Brands such as Hermes and Madeleine Vionnet have launched their own skiwear collections.
Hermes Early Ski Series
From stretch jumpsuits to wide-shouldered double-breasted jackets, from vintage neon fluorescent colors to futuristic beauty, skiwear has followed fashion trends since its inception, leaving a mark on the snow, races and runways.
At the beginning of the last century, ski clothing was mostly made of heavy wool and flannel lining. Men wear thick wool trousers with long jackets, and women wear knee-length wool skirts over the pants to keep warm. With the introduction of zipper technology, ski clothing can be removed in layers, making it easier to put on and take off.
After the first Winter Olympics in 1924, the functionality of ski clothing became increasingly important, some professional sports assembly manufacturers experimented with waterproof and stretch fabrics, and the introduction of Lastex in the mid-30s made stretch knit belts applied to trouser legs and cuffs, making ski clothing more warm and flexible.
The industry also began to think about how to make ski equipment more aerodynamic, and in the forties, with the production of new synthetic materials, skiers said goodbye to bulky knitwear and heavy skirts and began to switch to slim onesies.
Legendary Italian designer Emilio Pucci has ushered ski clothing into a new era with one-piece designs. Emilio Pucci competed with Italy at the 1932 Winter Olympics in New York at the age of 17 and served in the Italian Air Force after the outbreak of World War II.
In 1947, after the end of World War II, Emilio Pucci left the army to return to normal life, and he was not satisfied with the ski clothes sold on the market, so he designed and made his own ski clothes. He began his design career designing aerodynamic competitive uniforms for the Reed College ski team in Oregon, and in 1949 he opened his own label, where colorful patterns quickly became the brand’s logo. In 1952, two of today’s giants in the skiwear world, Moncler and Bogner, emerged. Bogner stretch ski pants make sports more fashionable.
German athlete Willy Bogner, an 11-time winner of the Nordic Ski Race, founded Bogner Bogner, a German luxury brand known for its skiwear, in 1932. In the 50s, BOGNER was known as the “Dior of ski fashion”, and in 1955, Maria Bogner designed the pull ring on her ski jacket in a striking B-shape, the original logo zipper pull.
Bogner
In the 1960s, double-lens goggles became widespread, and plastic ski boots replaced leather ski boots. Founded in 1978, MoonBoot is an Italian brand of professional ski equipment and sports shoes, which was originally inspired by the lunar boots worn by the astronauts of the Apollo lunar landing program.
MoonBoot
“On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” was one of the first films to feature skiwear fashion.
From the 1970s to the 1990s, neon and one-piece skiwear became the mainstream, with down jackets, bright sweaters and stretch pants becoming the most common ski looks. With the evolution of fabrics, ski clothing has become lighter, warmer and more waterproof. These technologies are also the beginning of gore-tex (high-tech waterproof membrane). The ski collection has become one of the signature products of luxury and fashion brands to show off their technological prowess.
Diana’s classic look in a one-piece red ski suit.
In the turn of the millennium, the aesthetics of skiwear tend to be tempered, the colors are more natural, and the fluffy ski jacket in pastel has become popular. In addition to mass users, ski wear from luxury and haute couture brands has also appeared in professional competitions such as the Winter Olympics. The snow field is both a competition venue and a snow fashion catwalk.
Julia Marino won silver at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
At the Beijing Winter Olympics, Julia Marino, who claimed that “I’ve eaten about 200 dumplings since the Winter Olympics,” carried the Prada Linea Rossa series of skis to win the U.S. team a silver medal in the women’s slope competition, and she is the brand ambassador of the series.
Snowboarding legend Sean White
Shaun White applauded Shaun White in the men’s halfpipe final at the Beijing Winter Olympics, and although he missed the top three this time, he has won three gold medals in five Winter Olympics, and Shaun White is already a legend. Sean White and his Whitespace snowboard brand teamed up with Louis Vuitton to create a bespoke Olympian suitcase in honor of White’s late friend Louis Vuitton menswear artistic director Virgil Abloh.
DIOR
In recent years, ski products have become the main series of luxury brands, Chanel, MIU MIU, etc. have directly moved the show to the snow slopes, and the dress style matches the mountain landscape to create a visual impact.
MIU MIU presents the Fall/Winter 2021 Snow Show in the Dolomites.
Chanel’s Fall/Winter 2021/22 ready-to-wear series was filmed in the ski resort of Megève.
Sports and fashion have always cooperated together, with the increasing popularity of skiing and the continuous development of clothing technology, the future skiers will become more and more comfortable and beautiful.
Responsible editor: Chen Hua
Proofreader: Xu Yijia