The giant jacket for swimmers, the other star of the Paris 2024 Olympics

The swimming events concluded on Sunday August 4, including the 4x100m medley relay, and it wasn’t just Leon Marchand who caused a stir at the Paris Olympics. Other stars also appeared in the competition: swim jackets. We will really remember these images that make us smile, the arrival of the athletes by the pool, dressed as if they are on their way to the North Pole; on her feet before… plunging into water around 26°C… However, for Leon Marchand and others, it was not simple coquetry or fashion effect.

Covering up before a swimming race is far from new. In fact, “it’s only about body heat,” he reminded France Information: Former 50m and 100m backstroke world champion Camille Lacour. Purposeful? Maintain warm muscles and optimal blood circulation.

A destabilization strategy

These layers of clothing are all the more useful as Arena Paris La Défense has been exposed to drafts, we learn. France Info:. The appeals chamber, “where the race really begins,” has not escaped this either. There was even a chill there that could cause the body temperature to drop. And it is for this reason that we are used to seeing swimmers patting or rubbing their arms and legs once in their swimsuits, as Florent Manaudou did in particular before departing from the top.

That said, these XXL and down jackets are also part of the show. One could even talk about the game of destabilizing the opponent… Each delegation thus doubled their creativity to ensure maximum comfort for swimmers in style. While Americans wore a white quilted jacket, the Chinese wrapped themselves in a thick red sack.

“Pearl Material” for Leon Marchand

On the tricolor side, Léon Marchand and his compatriots appeared each time in a long white anorak with a blue-white-red interior of the hood. Clipped by the signature of Le Coq Sportif, a partner of the French delegation. And again, everything is thought out. Eva Samson, the brand’s textile director, told the newspaper 20 minutes that this parka was made of “pearl material to give a shine and reflect the light of the pool and thereby highlight the athletes”.

Apart from these “small details that tell the story of the Olympics”, the clothes were of course of the ideal thickness to keep the body at the right temperature. A successful bet. Obviously yes. Leon Marchand, the new darling of the French, leaves these Games with four gold medals around his neck.