Passing the Torch: Technology in the Opening Ceremony Fashion at the Paris Olympics

With the 2024 Olympic Games set in Paris, France, one of the world’s fashion capitals, athletics and aesthetics collide to take center stage at the much-anticipated opening ceremony. The cultural showcase begins on July 26^th, when the best athletes from around the world will board boats along the Seine for a river parade through the heart of the French capital. This marks the first time in the history of the Olympic Summer Games that the opening ceremony will be held outside of a stadium, and the first time ever that the opening ceremony will be held on water.

Each country will display its national pride in custom apparel that contains a unique blend of style and innovation to match the unparalleled Parisian backdrop. In a move towards sustainability and inventiveness, many outfitters are utilizing patented fabric technology in their opening ceremony looks. Below are some of the fashion-forward technologies on display at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

Team USA

Returning for the ninth time as Team USA’s official outfitter, Ralph Lauren created designs that embody iconic American style. Team USA’s 2024 opening ceremony uniform embraces a modern spin on a tailored look, showcasing a classic single-breasted wool blazer with a red and white trim border and a striped oxford shirt. The look is unexpectedly paired with washed denim jeans and a black suede buck shoe.

Most notably, Team USA’s collection features the brand’s first-ever 100% Recycled Cotton Polo Shirt utilizing the CLARUS® technology patented by Natural Fiber Welding, which lengthens and strengthens recycled fibers using green chemistry. Natural Fiber Welding has filed fifty patent applications worldwide since 2017, mainly in the field of textile technology. When developing the collection for the 2024 opening ceremony, Ralph Lauren took careful consideration of its material and manufacturing choices, investing in innovative ways of decreasing the use of virgin materials.

Ralph Lauren similarly embraced this commitment to sustainability and textile innovation at the 2020 opening ceremony in Tokyo. Considering Tokyo’s summer heat, Ralph Lauren developed and debuted RL COOLING, a self-regulating temperature cooling device that monitors and optimizes temperature by dispersing heat from the wearer’s skin to create an immediate, long-lasting cooling sensation. Research by Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) suggests that personal thermal management systems have the potential to reduce reliance on energy-intensive cooling systems, such as HVAC systems.

Team USA, 2016 Olympics opening ceremony in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Getty Images).

Team Chinese Taipei (Taiwan)

Taiwan is renowned for its leadership in technological spheres across many business sectors. So, it comes as no surprise that the nation’s textile industry is proving its technological credentials at the Olympics with a focus on sustainable innovation. The Chinese Taipei Olympic Team’s opening ceremony uniforms were made in a collaboration between material producer Far Eastern New Century (FENC), fabric producer New Wide, and label producer Junmay.

FENC supplied its award-winning carbon-captured polyester: FENC® TopGreen® Bio3 PET (polyethylene terephthalate) filament. The polyester is made from carbon emissions using carbon capture and utilization technology. By capturing and reusing carbon emissions, carbon waste gas is converted into ethanol, then ethylene glycol, to be combined with petroleum-derived terephthalic acid and form low-carbon polyester. This proprietary biotechnology aims to significantly reduce demand for raw material extraction and reduce carbon footprints. FENC has filed 359 patent applications on polyester, fiber, optical film, medical material, and bio-energy in numerous countries including the U.S., since 2015.

New Wide utilized advanced Nano-Ge Nylon cooling yarn and a single-sided mini loop structure to develop fabric for the official uniform’s polo shirt. The yarn uses powder grinding and dispersion technology to implant germanium elements, releasing negative ions that neutralize the body’s positive charge, promote microcirculation, and reduce fatigue. The cooling yarn absorbs moisture to keep athletes cool, while the single-sided mini loop structure provides the light breathability of a single-sided fabric without clinging to the skin.)

The garment labels were designed by Junmay, Taiwan’s largest label manufacturer, using two sustainable yarns: GREENCELL® Filament Yarn, made from biodegradable raw materials, and Seawool® fabric, upcycled from discarded oyster shells and patented by Hans Global Textile.

Team Ireland

Team Ireland athletes will be wearing LW Pearl formal wear in the opening ceremony, created and manufactured by Dublin born, New York-based designer, Laura Weber. The silhouette for Team Ireland is inspired by the traditional double-breasted sporting jacket, featuring a shamrock brooch and a tailored pant to match.

Sustainability is at the center of the collection. The suit is made from ECO-Hybrid taffeta, a fabric used in luxury clothing. ECO-Hybrid is a sustainable material made from recycled T-shirts and PET bottles, patented by Japanese company Teijin Frontier The fabric is lightweight and soft to the touch, with a sand-washed finish. To keep athletes cool in the summer heat, the suit is water-wicking and moisture-permeable.

With today’s cutting-edge technology, athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony will not only look their best but will feel their best as well. As each host city is responsible for “passing the torch” to the next, technological advancements pave the way for Olympic designers of the past to pass the torch to designers of the future to create the most fashionable and technologically innovative opening ceremony outfits. We will undoubtedly see this trend continue for many Games to come.

Special thanks to Samantha Fakhimi, a summer associate in Foley’s San Diego office, for her contributions to this article.