With competition underway and the first medals already handed out in Olympic figure skating in Sochi, fans of the games’ most glamorous sport have already gotten down to business evaluating the on-ice fashions on display during the inaugural team event.
Ahead of the Sochi Olympic individual figure skating events kicking off Feb. 11, we took the opportunity to call out some of our favorite looks the top athletes sported in recent days in Russia. While NBC commentator and former champion Johnny Weir has attracted a lot of attention for his zany fashions, the majority of the sequins, rhinestones and feathers remain right where they’ve always been: On the ice.
Below are nine of our top Sochi Olympic looks from the team event and nine of our.. not-so-favorites.
LOOKING NICE ON ICE
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Getty ImagesYulia Lipnitskaya of Russia not only impressed the world with her warp-speed, superhuman spins and consistent ability to land the sport’s most difficult triple-triple combinations, but her “Schindler’s List” free skate was undeniably on point. Putin would approve. -
Getty ImagesLipnitskaya’s teammates also brought top fashions. Russia’s Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov rocked this classic black-on-black look for their “Swan Lake” and looked sensational. We agree with our friends at HuffPost Canada, this was a winning look. -
Getty ImagesFellow Russians Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov also looked stunning in the pairs short program. This look for their dramatic, classical “Masquerade Waltz” program are an excellent example of pairs costumes not being too matchy-matchy but still coordinating — both with their music and each other — beautifully. -
Getty ImagesGracie Gold of the United States was picturesque in her “Sleeping Beauty” free skate — and her dress coincidentally was a nearly perfect match for the arena’s color scheme. Well done, Miss Gold! -
Getty ImagesJapan’s Akiko Suzuki also brought her fashion “A” game with this beautifully sequined off-white dress during the ladies free skate. -
Getty ImagesValentina Marchei of Italy brought a modern, somewhat goth look to her tango-inspired free skate and we loved it. -
Getty ImagesFellow Italians Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte rocked these classic looks for their “42nd Street” short dance. Flawless. -
Getty ImagesCanada’s Patrick Chan’s short program costume brought an air of seriousness without being boring — there’s still some nice design here. -
Getty ImagesFrance’s Mae Berenice Meite’s short program dress was definitely not boring either. The vibrant pink was an excellent match for her sassy and sensual program to Prince’s “Question of U.”
NOT OUR FAVORITE FASHIONS
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Getty ImagesGermany’s Nelli Zhiganshina and Alexander Gazsi of Germany had the team event’s biggest “WTF” moment with their Paris Hilton-meets-a-geek-themed short dance. The giant beige bow on her back end pushed this look way over the edge. -
Getty ImagesRussians Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev — or, Bobrova to be specific — were blinding with their short dance costumes. Our eyes are still burning from Bobrova’s dress, which was apparently Marilyn Monroe-inspired. -
Getty ImagesWe were not fans of the free dance costumes worn by Canada’s Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. In addition to being sort of bizarre, they didn’t seem to be a good match for their program’s understated classical music and theme. -
Getty ImagesJapan’s Tatsuki Machida’s “Firebird” costume in the men’s free skate matched his music and theme but maybe veered a bit too much into the extreme. -
Getty ImagesWe’re not in love with the colors of Ukraine’s Julia Lavrentieva and Yuri Rudyk’s costumes from the pairs short program. -
Getty ImagesChina’s Kexin Zhang would have had a nice look with her short program dress — if the too-deep sheer fabric covering her chest wasn’t at such an awkward height. -
Getty ImagesWe just can’t get behind this look from Italy’s Stefania Berton and Ondrej Hotarek for their short program. The duo looks like they’re going to two different parties, despite her fringe matching his bright yellow pants. -
Getty ImagesBlack lace over forest green with a big ole white design down the side of one pant leg meant a bit too much was going on with Italy’s Paul Bonifacio Parkinson’s short program costume. -
Getty ImagesCanada’s Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford skated wonderfully in the pairs short program, but we couldn’t get behind their costumes. His, in particular, looked like sparkly gray pajamas.
Did we miss your favorite look or dislike anything you loved? Let us know below.
