“They have to create their individuality, their difference.” beauty details, the main ally of athletes in the Olympic Games

The Olympics were long a male affair until women were allowed to participate in 1912. More than a century later, they were able to impose their codes and bring beauty to the pageant with great details that even became, for some; signature

But as historian Elizabeth de Feydo reminds us, beauty has always played a role in the history of sports. “If we go back to the origins of the Olympic Games, so back to ancient Greece, gladiators were considered demigods. And they massaged with scented oils to have this radiant beauty. This reflects the idea that anything that can be made beautiful gives off a form of almost divine power. And so it’s a victory.” Therefore, for a professional, it is not just a matter of coquetry, but almost a kind of talisman, charm.

Innovations designed for athletes

But femininity has not always been the wind in the sails in the competitive arena. On the contrary, the first female athletes even tended to conform to male rules. “We can draw a parallel with the softie who cut his hair and put on pants to gain his freedom and equality. Or business women in the ’80s who wore men’s suits.” Therefore, women must initially maintain a low profile and hide as much as possible what might differentiate them from their male counterparts in order to legitimize their place. “But what’s interesting is that when women started entering competitive sports in the 1920s, they gradually imposed their standards on the field. And these will then be taken back to the city. This applies to fashion, with the example of culottes, which were born for the obligations of competition on the tennis courts. But this phenomenon is also observed in terms of beauty. “Waterproof makeup was first designed for athletes before becoming part of every woman’s routine.” In fact, it was for a water ballet at the New York World’s Fair that Helena Rubinstein envisioned the first waterproof mascara in 1939. The historian also cites solar amber, which L’Oréal founder Eugene Schueller envisioned when he was sunburnt. seafaring Innovations designed for athletes are then used by everyone.

Over the years, we see female athletes asserting their femininity more and more. Especially on the tennis courts with Chris Evert and his trendy hairstyles like his diamond bracelet. Then the Williams sisters. In athletics, Florence Griffith Joyner, nicknamed Flo Jo, made headlines with her claw nails affecting sprinter Sha Curry Richardson forty years later… Legends impose their wishes and revolutionize the codes. Nail art, coloring, braids, makeup… little by little the details of beauty develop until they become a true bias. A trend that also attracts men, especially in terms of hairstyles, as we can see especially on football fields.

Preparing for the presentation

Because athletes also need to be seen. “They have to create their own personality, their own difference, because they are at the front of the stage. In fact, they stage it themselves. They are performers,” Elizabeth de Feydo analyzes. “It’s good because we’re in front of others that we have to put on makeup. We see this clearly with swimming. Nobody wears make-up to go to the pool, but here we are in the idea of ​​both a mascot and a performance. And the distinction is within the framework of the performance.” Indeed, sportswomen not only have to appeal to the public, but also to brands that will thus become their sponsors and therefore help them develop their careers. “This was emphasized on television, and today even more so on social networks,” adds the historian. Athletes are even becoming ambassadors for beauty brands themselves. Thus, the American gymnast Simone Biles became the face of the K18 hair brand, and the Paralympic champion Marie Bochet became the face of L’Oréal…

Without forgetting that all these details of beauty are also part of the desire for patriotic identification, athletes all choose the colors of their country’s flag. We especially remember Lor Manaudou’s tricolor manicures during his various competitions.

“In the beginning, the hunters were dressed in the colors of their village, their clan. For knights it was in their standard that they took the colors of the house or the colors of the lord they depended on. This idea of ​​wearing colors has always been there, be it on clothes or directly on the skin. The latter then sees himself tattooed with makeup. Details that bring them closer to like-minded people who also accept the same codes. Furthermore, some beauty brands have gotten into the Olympics wave, such as Nailmatic, which has developed a collection of crayons and tattoos for supporters. But also three polishes to reproduce the colors of the French flag on the nails. A story of playing like Manaudu.

Beauty, a way to identify a little more with your country. Above all, it remains the most symbolic way to support athletes who, as Elizabeth de Feydo points out, establish themselves alongside artists as “the new deities”; Because, after all, not everyone can participate in the Olympic Games. But everyone can follow them, in style.