Traditional Indian saree returns as ceremonial uniform for Paris 2024 Olympics

To commemorate the forthcoming Paris 2024 Olympics, scheduled to be held from July 26th to August 11th, the Indian female athletes will be dressed in Indian sarees as their official ceremonial outfits.

Indian Athletes at Paris 2024 Olympics

This attire was most recently worn during the Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, together with the contrasting navy blue blazers. This time, however, the athletes will wear standalone pre-pleated ikat-printed sarees, and the uniform shall comprise the following:

It has been suggested that the saree be worn in combination with the elegant blouse, which has an IOA logo printed on the pocket.

The blouse, worn under the saree, will be saffron, signifying the strength and courage of the Indian nation. This type of attire is designed using Ikat-printed sarees, where the fabric patterns are developed using the tie-and-dye technique, where the warp yarns are tied before beginning to weave the fabric design.

Moreover, whereas male athletes would be dressed in Kurta pajamas along with bandy jackets in IOA insignia, this fashion statement is to be opened during the opening ceremony in Paris. Proposed designs for both male and female athletes were cleared by the IOA on May 28th after the government gave it the green light to adopt traditional wear for the games.

Notably, the traditional saree was replaced after the Rio Olympics, prior to the 2018 Commonwealth and Asian Games. During the Tokyo Games in 2021, female athletes wore salwar suits that were golden in color with jackets on, and on the other hand, male athletes wore indigenous jackets that had high collars.

Earlier, male athletes from India had worn blazers with trousers of the same color and a head turban.

But this time, for the first time, they will be dressed in ‘bandi jackets’ along with ‘kurtas and pajamas.’

There will also be Indian flag engravings on the men’s and women’s apparel.

The female athletes will be in saffron blouses with ikat-printed green and orange-colored sarees. Male athletes will have tricolor on the tape and lower panels of the bandi jackets.

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