American skater and bronze medalist Debi Thomas decided to forgo a dress at the Calgary Olympics, instead opting to perform her routine in an embellished jumpsuit instead. not to mention a backflipping Surya Bonaly! German figure skater Katarina Witt is known as one of the greatest of all time in her sport, thanks in part to her back-to-back Olympic gold medals. One outfit, a feathered blue number worn by East Germanys Katarina Witt at the 1988 Olympic games (pictured below), was deemed too scandalous by the International Skating Union. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Photo: Getty Images Kerrigan, of the U.S., performing at the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway, where she won the silver medal. These Twitter reactions sum it up. She was also paid seven figures to pose, making her one of the highest paid models for Playboy in the 1990s. And speaking of dresses, Witts 88 Olympics blue dress made history itself. Aside from winning a gold medal for East Germany at the Calgary Olympics, Katarina Witt caused quite the uproar over the short hemline on her blue feathered dress. Mit emerged from the masses in a bodysuit with pants. France's Ma-Brnice Mit skated IN PANTS, and ended her Beyonc medley with "Run the World (Girls)". The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Straight downzap, Witt says in her memoir Only With Passion. Unfortunately, the judges werent as impressed, giving her a score of 46.62, putting her in ninth place. The American skater competing in the ladies singles figure skating event at the 1992 Winter Olympic Games held in Albertville, France, on Feb. 21, 1992. So much so that after television network CBS lost the rights to broadcast NFL football games, they turned to figure skating (and the Gone With the Wind sequel miniseries Scarlett, because frankly my dear, lots of people dont give a damn about football) to save their November sweeps. They dont just sit and drink coffee and they move the bottom half of their bodies well, which is very beneficial. Paging Gus Kenworthy. but alas, Dr. Ruths vision for a dress code came true, and the Katarina Rule was born requiring skaters to (in the words of Jurassic Park) cover their butts. The event led to a change of costume-rules, which got their latest update in 2016. Womens figure skating is, hands down, one of the most visually stunning events to watch at the Olympics. Debi Thomas dazzled in an embellished bubblegum pink outfit as she placed second at the U.S. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider Katarina Witt performs on stage during the 'Jedermann' dress rehearsal at the Berlin Cathedral Church on October 13, 2009 in Berlin, Germany. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. 1. While dresses have to be lightweight to not create too much drag, each one is unique. The skater from East Germany skating during the 1984 Winter Olympics held in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, on Feb. 18, 1984. But if women can wear tuxedos on the red carpet and not be any less elegant, female skaters can do the same in the rink. One outfit, a feathered blue number worn by East Germany's Katarina Witt at the 1988 Olympic games (pictured below), was deemed too scandalous by the International Skating Union. Tens across the board for Katarina Witt, the Olympic figure skating powerhouse whose determination on and off the ice dominated American pop culture of the 80s and 90s. Organize, control, distribute and measure all of your digital content. Keeping all of these creative decisions in mind, skaters have to consider that the rules are pretty subjective: What's perfectly acceptable to one judge might be "garish" or "too theatrical" to another. The following is Rule 501 in the [ISU Special Regulations & Technical Rules handbook, last updated in 2016: In short, women's costumes don't have to follow a specific formula. Clothing that does not adhere to these guidelines will be penalized by a deduction.". Herma Planck-Szabo, Ethel Muckelt and Beatrix Loughran, 1924. At the peak of her professional skating career, Katarina Witt could have expected to earn in the region $1.5 million a year. Laetitia Hubert of France in a yellow skirt and some strategically-placed flames at the 1998 Games. Figure skaters shouldnt wear outfits that could arouse judges. The Canadian athlete competing in a figure skating competition in the 1988 Winter Olympics. Both of these hardcore costume bans were lifted in 2003, and since then, the ISU has kept the Olympic figure skating dress code rules relatively subjective at least for women. Kwan won the silver medal. British skater Jeannette Altwegg in a shiny, short-skirted dress at the Olympics in 1952. Katarina Witt, (born December 3, 1965, Karl-Marx-Stadt, East Germany [now Chemnitz, Germany]), German figure skater who was the first woman to win consecutive Olympic gold medals (1984 and 1988) in singles figure skating since Sonja Henie in 1936. Dinamo is not just a design practice, it is a way of thinking that applies interesting concepts to a wide range of production areas, from typography and design to research and consulting. 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However, at the 1988 Olympics, the official Olympic dress code rules changed in response to the "scandalous" outfit worn by a competitor from East Germany named Katarina Witt. An unabashed 80s & 90s pop culture junkie, Michael Jones is a Brooklyn-based writer and co-host of the Pop Trash Podcast. Its absolutely nightmarish!, says runway designer Vera Wang, who custom designed the outfit of US competitor Nathan Chen. Ivanova, of the Soviet Union, at the 1984 Winter Olympic Games in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Christopher Morris - Corbis via Getty Images, competed in a skirt with a comparatively short hemline, lower necklines were making their way onto the ice, womens hips, midriffs and buttocks had to be covered with a skirt. 23.02.2018. . For real. But the 90s also took Witt out of the figure skating world and directly into dance clubs? Saaame, Leslie Jones Is Narrating the Olympics and Its , 70 of the Sexiest Figure-Skating Costumes of All Time. Katarina Witt's infamous blue dress at the 1988 Olympics is the reason figure skating now has a dress code. You know, the kind that punctuate songs by Cathy Dennis, The Real McCoy, Le Click, etc. The American skater performing her free skating program during the ladies singles event at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. Evgeni Plushenko of Russia in a silver disco outfit with a sheer panel down the front at the 2002 Games. Search instead in. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. You've hit your max! . This past year when Mary Trump dropped her book Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the Worlds Most Dangerous Man, she included an anecdote about how Trump once tried to hit on Katarina Witt. Competing for her 9th consecutive U.S. Champion title, Michelle Kwan wore a one-shouldered gold sequin dress. In fact, at the 1924 games in Chamonix, France, women wore full skirts with sweaters and hats that didnt look much different from their everyday clothes (which makes sense, considering Olympic skating rinks used to be outdoors). By most standards today it was basically a blue dress with some feathers. Long before ESPN would release their annual Body issue showing off naked Gronk or chiseled Ronda Rousey or the of Jerry Rice, Witt appeared on the December 1998 cover of Playboy Magazine and in a spread that delivered all the body positivity. The 23-year-old took to the ice in black leggings that appeared to be attached to a gold and black sparkly sleeveless top. During the ladies short event, French figure skater Ma-Brnice Mit carved out a place for herself by skating to music including the Beyonc hits Halo and Run the World (Girls). But thats not the only aspect of her performance making waves. And what's an Olympic figure skating competition without controversy? In 1994, after the absolute blockbuster chaos of the Tonya Harding/Nancy Kerrigan story, figure skating was riding an all-time high in the zeitgeist of American culture. Meite, of France, competing at the Iceberg Skating Palace during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics on Feb. 8, 2014. Katarina Witt's outfit caused the ISU to institute "The Katarina Rule." Associated Press "The Katarina Rule" dictates that women's hips, midriffs, and behinds are covered. The Russian skater performing in the women's free program of the figure skating event at the Olympic Ice Center, Feb. 21, 2002, during the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. This means that although most competitors stick with the typical glitzy, sparkling dresses, there are hardly any strict rules that have to be followed. Tap into Getty Images' global scale, data-driven insights, and network of more than 340,000 creators to create content exclusively for your brand. The odd badass bodysuit happens from time to time, and many use their costumes as an opportunity to express themselves. The best part is that figure skating fashion just keeps getting better. She also wore pants for her free skate at the 2014 Olympics the unitard was similar, but the sparkly top was silver, blue, and black. even Dr. Ruth was contacted by Reuters to comment on the dres, boogie to the dulcet sounds of a cold bottle of Diet Coke being cracked open, for the most 90s dance track imaginable: Skate With Me., an anecdote about how Trump once tried to hit on Katarina Witt, The East German Stasi (secret police) kept 3,500 pages of files on her.
katarina witt blue dress
