Here’s why figure skating outfits have so many sheer panels (2024)

• Sheer panels and figure skating costumes go together like peanut butter and jelly, but the pairing didn't happen by accident.
• The International Skating Union forbids theatricality and the effect of excessive nudity.
• Sheer panels are 'modest' and adhere to the dress code.

Figure skating competitors often make headlines for their extravagant outfits as much as they do for their athletic abilities. However, those glimmering crystals and sheer panels aren't just deployed for ornamental purposes — they actually serve as bulwarks against immodesty and point deductions.

Unlike many other athletes at the winter Olympics, figure skaters aren't required to don official Olympics uniforms; instead, they're tasked with finding an outfit that is both artistically expressive and breathable — and that's in addition to the pressure of executing a perfect routine.

When the first Olympic figure skating competition launched in the 1920s, costumes were designed with the cold weather in mind. As the years progressed, figure skating fashion evolved — both men and women's costumes got shorter, more embellished, and more dramatic.

But after Katarina Witt famously competed in the 1998 Olympics in a scandalously short, feathery blue costume that officials deemed too revealing, the International Skating Union stepped in and put official dress code regulations in place.

The rule is known tomany as "The Katarina Rule," and it states that"At ISU Championships, the Olympic Winter Games, and International Competitions, the clothing of the Competitors must be modest, dignified and appropriate for athletic competition — not garish or theatrical in design.Clothing may, however, reflect the character of the music chosen."

Costume designer Brad Griffies — who designed American skaterGracie Gold's blue costume, below — likes to deploy nude fabric strategically.

"If you’re going for strapless, it's nice to have that nude in there, to make everything stay," he told Slate,suggesting that flesh-colored panels help ensure modesty, but also a better, more flexible fit.

The guidelines continue: "The clothing must not give the effect of excessive nudity inappropriate for the discipline. Men must wear full length trousers and must not wear tights. In addition, in Ice Dance ladies must wear a skirt. Accessories and props are not permitted. Clothing that does not adhere to these guidelines will be penalized by a deduction."

As Bustle notes, because the ISU rules apply to men and women, sheer panels and embellishments can be seen on both genders.

Basically, the flesh colored panels make itseem like skaters are showing a lot of skin, without actually showing any and thus breaking the rules.

So unless the official guidebook undergoes a complete re-haul, sheer panels and illusion sleeves are here to stay — for modesty's sake.

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