Ralph Lauren has unveiled the first of its designs for Team USA competing in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, with the emphasis that "from yarn to dye" that the clothing were made in America.
The company, licensed by the United States Olympic Committee, has been making Team USA's apparel for the opening and closing ceremonies for each of the Olympic games since 2008.
The American fashion designer debuted the red, white and navy uniforms on NBC's Today Show, along with a 5-minute company video featuring its 40 American production partners in a bid to redeem itself after drawing heavy criticism for manufacturing its gear for the last Olympics in China.
The short film documents the production of the athletes' American flag sweaters, starting with the 142-year-old Oregon family-run sheep farm to the California husband and wife team's high-end knitwear company where the sweaters are made.
“We have worked incredibly hard as a company to go across America to find the best partners to help us produce the Olympic uniforms at the highest quality for the best athletes in the world,” said David Lauren, the company’s executive vice president of advertising, marketing and corporate communications.
Ralph Lauren has revealed that it used more than 40 vendors to create 65,000 items for the 650 athletes, from ranchers in the rural West to yarn spinners in Pennsylvania to sewers in New York’s Garment District for the closing ceremony outfits.
The ensemble includes a navy peacoat with a red stripe, a classic ski sweater with a reindeer motif and a hand-sewn American flag, and a tasseled chunky-knit hat.
Figure skater Evan Lysacek, who won gold in Vancouver in 2010, said the ceremonial uniforms make the athletes stand a little prouder.
“As an athlete, the clothing means even more than you’d think. The training, the sacrifices, the lifestyle, which is not glamorous and can be grueling and trying at times, all seem to come together in the moment when you realize you are part of the Olympic team," he said.
