FASHION Magazine

Check out all the Olympic-themed fashion! »

We’ve officially reached the one-week countdown to the London Olympics, which can only mean one thing: the Olympics have hit their peak, leaving no one (not even the fashion industry) untouched in their wake. From the Canadiana-themed the Bay collection to one of Opening Ceremony’s covetable collaborations at its temporary pop-up OC London store, there is so much amazing Olympic-themed fashion at our fingertips that even the least athletic of us can confidently get their sportif chic on. We’ve got a lineup of the most stylish Olympic-inspired collections for your viewing pleasure, as well as a few staple sportswear pieces should you be inspired to get a sweat going yourself!

View this look in our Kate Middleton slideshow! »

Our favourite royal was out and about this morning, visiting the National Portrait Gallery for the opening of an Olympic-themed photography exhibit. (A perfect event, considering that Kate’s both a patron of the gallery and an Olympic ambassador.)

The London 2012 Olympics are fast approaching, and countries around the world have unveiled their team uniforms. This year, a handful of buzz-worthy designers were tapped to create sporty looks, including Stella McCartney for Great Britain, Giorgio Armani for Italy and Ralph Lauren for the United States. McCartney’s collection—which used a blue and white themed flag—was received with tepid enthusiasm from the Brits, who felt the omission of the red crosses was a poor design choice. Another disappointment was Ralph Lauren’s retro-Americana inspired uniforms, which were a little too school marmy for our taste and were actually produced overseas, rather than on home turf. Surprisingly, the standouts were the underdogs, who didn’t rely on fashion powerhouses to produce great uniforms. We loved France’s collection, which channeled Parisian-cool with chic black and white uniforms designed by Adidas, as well as Jamaica’s kit, which was playful, colourful, sporty and appropriately designed by Bob Marley’s daughter, Cedella Marley. While Team Canada’s official garbs are yet to be released (a replica collection is already flying off shelves at the Bay), we take a look at some of our favourite worldwide competitors.

Check out some of our favourite team uniforms!»

As if we weren’t already obsessing over the forthcoming Olympics, news that some of our favourite English Roses will be participating in the closing ceremony has our excitement levels at a fever pitch. Supermodels Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Georgia May Jagger and Lily Cole will be clad in British labels like Vivienne Westwood […]

The post Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Georgia May Jagger and Lily Cole will participate in the closing ceremonies of the London Olympics! appeared first on FASHION Magazine.

View the whole medal-inspired collection »

For those of us who want to make like an Olympic athlete but don’t have the wherewithal to ever make it to the medal podium, Miu Miu’s latest Olympic-inspired collection lets the sartorially inclined score a proverbial medal by sporting one of its brilliant gold, silver or bronze accessories. The accessories lineup, which will be available in select London stores on July 27 (i.e. Olympic opening day), features Miu Miu favourites like the structured Bauletto satchel and sandals in soft nappa leather.

By Sophie Walker

From slick new shops to gold medal–worthy gowns, Londoner Sophie Walker reports from the fashion frontlines at the 2012 Olympic Games.

Check out our editors picks for London »

This month, we’re reporting on a trend that will take over living rooms everywhere during the Olympics, a sexy new study about the pleasurable side effects of working out and the latest high-intensity workout craze—though get-slim-quick-seekers need not apply. Read on!

Whether you’re a workout junkie or finally making good on a New Year’s resolution to get fit, there’s nothing quite like spring’s landslide into summer to motivate an increase in all things fitness. From the best exercise classes to athletic-inspired fashion, we’re here to help you look (and feel!) like a gold medal winner all summer long.

As Canada’s athletes gear up for the London 2012 Olympic Games, we speak with a veteran and a newcomer—six-time medallist Clara Hughes and first-time Olympian boxer Mary Spencer—about preparation, pressure and product.

View every look Kate Middleton has worn since her engagement » This week’s extra-special TGIF treat comes via Kate Middleton and her latest red carpet appearance in London. Tonight (as in now, in EST time warp terms), Kate is attending “Our Greatest Team Rises,” a concert to celebrate British athletes competing in the upcoming London […]

The post Kate Middleton is an extra-special TGIF treat in the most beautiful teal Jenny Packham gown ever appeared first on FASHION Magazine.

For Alexandre Despatie, diving is all about aesthetics. “Every time I step on the boards, I’m judged by how I look,” says the two-time Olympic medallist while on set at his Men’s FASHION cover shoot in Toronto. “It’s a fact I live with. My form has to be sharp. Every angle of my body is studied—it’s what I’m marked on.”

At a solid five-foot-eight and 155 pounds, Despatie’s frame is noticeably well toned. As he approaches the camera in a brief black swimsuit, an air of confidence radiates from his diamond-cut build. “Our bodies are our machines—our Formula One race cars,” he later says, after throwing on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. “They need to be perfect to run well.”

In the midst of preparing for the London Summer Games—his fourth Olympiad to date—the Montrealer is clearly running on overdrive. Heading to the gym six days a week, he maintains a schedule that befits his title as Canada’s 36-time senior diving champion. Yet his daily routine—which includes 1,000 crunches, one hour of strength training, 20 minutes of trampoline work, an indoor cycling program called PowerWatts and 50 sets of ab exercises called “pike-ups”—is something he feels “lucky” to be able to  do at all.

Forget sports! It seems the London 2012 Olympics will be an international battleground of the sartorial sort after Prada announced today it would be designing the Italian sailing team’s uniforms. The all-blue, slim-fitting uniforms will feature prominent Prada logos on the sleeves.

The news is merely another drop in the ocean of Olympic haute wears. The USA once again hired Ralph Lauren to design its 2012 collection. This year the designer took a decidedly traditional turn with abundant whites and preppy polos (though with some unforgivable popped collars). Stella McCartney’s hotly debated collection for the UK has been receiving some serious media attention including complaints that it’s “too blue” and “won’t look good on out of shape soccer fans.” And then there’s Giorgio Armani, whose sportswear diffusion line, Emporio Armani EA7, promises to inspire its athletes in its latest video.

All things aside, this is all starting to sound a lot like Paris Fashion Week. But with the Olympics’ incredible viewership (it’s estimated to be around 4 billion people) and its serious commercial potential, it’s no wonder these designers want to put their name on a tracksuit.

So where does Canada fit into all of this? The Hudson’s Bay Company has created patched denim jackets (Olympic Canadian Tuxedo anyone?) and a wide variety of sweaters, tees and jackets. It’s a casual collection to be sure, but a definite commercial hit.

Who will reign supreme on the catwalk in the opening ceremonies? Only time will tell. But for now, we just hope this move towards designer uniforms means we’ll never have to see another one of those backwards Poorboy caps again.