Closet Constructor: Welcome to the Style Olympics

Welcome to Closet Constructor, a weekly series where I (a style editor) help you (a well-meaning person who likes clothes) discover new, interesting and affordable ways to really start dressin’.

The 2024 Olympics are officially here. The global competition technically kicks off today in Paris (although, as fans of soccer and rugby will tell you, the games are already underway), with 11,000-odd elite athletes descending upon the City of Light to vie for one of the greatest accomplishments in sports and a spot in the history books. There are storylines galore, ranging from unprecedented stacked fields in events like gymnastics and track and field to the ongoing shitshow that is the Seine fiasco to the return of the infamous “anti-sex” cardboard beds.

And this year’s spectacle has already proven that, as much as athletes and medals and records, the Olympics will be dominated by brands. French mega-conglomerate LVMH, for instance, who owns designer labels like Louis Vuitton and Dior and is a first-time sponsor of the games after shelling out a reported $163 million, is plastered over much of the event — the Olympic torch arrived in a custom LV trunk.

Nike and Ralph Lauren, both longtime sponsors of the USA team, are leaning hard into eye-catching collections and viral moments as well. (Nike, for instance, dropped a flashy Electric pack, with a whopping 55-shoe lineup.) Streetwear brand Kith is getting in on the action with a Team USA basketball drop. Kardashian-owned shapewear brand Skims, too.

Unfettered capitalism piggybacking on cultural moments is nothing new, but this occasion feels decidedly unprecedented, not just in regards to scale, but to the intellectual and aesthetic concepts being deployed. Jacquemus had the opportunity to slap a logo on a t-shirt and call it a day: instead, the French label launched an entire very clever, probably very expensive media blitz. And it’s not just them: from Tracksmith to Gucci, brands are ramping up creativity and execution for the occasion.

The reality of this outcome is dictated more by a discerning, social-driven market than it is some innate desire to do better by the everyday fan, but it’s nonetheless a win for the Olympics, and for the consumers at large. Case in point: the resulting horde of garb and gear that the Games have spawned is, unlike the vast majority of sporting-adjacent apparel, kind of, maybe, possibly quite swaggy.

GAP x Team USA dropped a few genuinely solid pieces, including a killer color-blocked rugby I’d wear any day of the month, not just when USWNT is dismantling some underfunded rival from the global south. The Nike SB uniforms are thoroughly intriguing, especially the denim “El Jeano” skate pants. Omega and Ralph Lauren continue to deliver on their legacy-build promise of quality, craftsmanship and I’m-better-than-you status. Toss it all together, and you have a vaguely patriotic, very fire ‘fit that, combined with a Katie Ledecky gold, might just reignite some semblance of belief in American exceptionalism.

How Omega Times the Olympic Games

The Swiss watchmaker has held the position of Official Timekeeper to 31 editions of the Olympics. This is how the company does it.

Enjoy the opening ceremony and your weekend. Don’t forget to time it on your new Seamaster.

Shop the Look

GAP Team USA Rugby Polo Shirt

Omega Seamaster Diver 300m Chronometer 42mm

Ralph Lauren Team USA Closing Ceremony Jacket

Nike SB El Jeano Skate Pants

Adidas Samba OG Shoes

Thoughts? Comments? Queries on how to pick out the perfect pair of socks? Email me your questions and concerns at psandoval@insidehook.com.