Runner Maggie Vessey knows how to turn heads. At last week鈥檚 Prefontaine Classic track meet in Oregon, the 32-year-old nabbed silver in the 800-meter event, then promptly garnered more press for her designer duds than her impressive kick.
In a sea of muted running outfits, Vessey rocked a kit聽聽as 鈥渁 bright Navajo-inspired print with long sleeves on top, and a skimpy, strappy bottom. And she sported Chanel earrings.鈥 The move garnered a lot of attention and made us wonder if we could expect to see more exciting fashion choices on the red carpet鈥攅r, track.
Sadly, says elite runner聽, the answer is probably not. Strict clothing regulations enforced by both national and international track and field governing bodies (USATF and IAAF) is the main reason. Athletes and their sponsors must comply with those policies, which include rules about coloring, and logo size and placement. (Check out聽聽showing the difficulties sponsors face in getting USATF approval for their designs.)
The rules have聽聽in the past few years for restricting athletes鈥 sponsorship opportunities. And while the rules聽聽despite athletes’聽, there is a loophole: unsponsored athletes can wear pretty much whatever they want.
Vessey isn鈥檛 the first athlete to take advantage of that fact. As the Eugene Register-Guard reported in 1999, high jumper聽聽鈥渃ompeted in the Millrose Games wearing an Anne Klein-designed strapless two-piece fur outfit.鈥 More recently, 3,000-meter steeplechaser Alexi Pappas聽聽wearing a homemade singlet with polka-dot stripes, and a Spiderman top. Aric Van Halen ran the 3,000-meter steeplechase at this year鈥檚聽聽in a jersey featuring the torso-sized face of the Mona Lisa.
Of course, the costumes aren鈥檛 just for fun. The media coverage they get can help attract sponsors. Acuff signed with Asics, while Pappas signed with the Nike Oregon Track Club. Vessey, a former New Balance athlete, will likely attract new sponsors as well. Should she sign, the fashion show would effectively come to an end. 聽
But there鈥檚 another reason we shouldn鈥檛 expect to see more outrageous clothes on the track that has nothing to do with regulations.
Fleshman brings up聽聽that looked into how clothes affect self-perception. In the study, people were given a coat, then asked to take a test. When they were told the coat belonged to a doctor, they performed significantly better on the test than when they believed the coat belonged to a painter.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 part of the reason why there are certain things that keep repeating in athletic uniforms,鈥 Fleshman says. 鈥淪omeone like me who grew up watching the pros鈥擨 watched X who looked like X and wore X. So that鈥檚 what I associate with being world class. I think it鈥檚 difficult to evolve fashion too much without feeling like you鈥檙e sacrificing performance.鈥