The Latest in Tokyo 2021 Leotards

Simone Biles

I really, really like this. And what guts from Simone. She stayed in Tokyo, cheered for her team, kept trying to get cleared to compete... I hope all those blowhards who accused her of bailing because it got hard promptly shoved this in their pieholes. She was only medically cleared for this event because she downgraded her dismount to remove some twists. She didn't have to do this. I'm so impressed that she kept her cool and kept trying.

MyKayla Skinner

I just realized Suni Lee wore this leotard when she won the all-around, so it's not new at all. But hey, this was an unexpected (by me, before the Olympics started) outcome, so it FELT new.

Jade Carey

And Jade wore it the next night for HER winning floor performance. Is this the lucky leotard?

Jade Carey

THIS one certainly wasn't. Poor Jade. She somehow lost track of her steps on the run up to the vault, and I only had one eye on it, but I heard Nastia gasp before she even got near the springboard. Jade adjusted and did a basic vault but was absolutely crushed, as she was considered a medal favorite. I was really happy she rebounded on the floor. I also don't love that leotard, so maybe it is the bad-luck leo. It's the dreary OPPOSITE of the other one.

Suni Lee

Mandatory Credit: Photo by CHINE NOUVELLE/SIPA/Shutterstock (12242296l) (210801) - TOKYO, Aug 1, 2021 (Xinhua) - Sunisa Lee of the United States reacts during the women's uneven bars final of artistic gymnastics at Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, on Aug. 1, 2021. Japan Tokyo Oly Artistic Gymnastics Women's Uneven Bars Final - 01 Aug 2021

Okay fine let's just repeat everyone. Suni's face here says a lot. The bars are her favorite, and she was expected to win gold, but she borked a couple things and took bronze instead. She later said she'd been too sucked into social media after her gold medal win. TWITTER STRIKES AGAIN. Also, Jade wore this in the all-around, and I called it boring. Why did I do that? It's not even boring in the photo I pulled. I think I must have been writing from TV memory and I hadn't seen it catch the light quite right? I am the worst.

Nina Derwael

This is a jazzy one, and good for when you might -- and in fact do! -- win gold. I'm a little obsessed with Nina since her herky-jerky floor routine.

Nina Derwael

Well. That looks hard.

Nina Derwael

"Oh, SHIT, is that the time? I should've stopped levitating 10 minutes ago."

Rebeca Andrade

That's a nice leo, but not my favorite; however, I prefer it to...

Rebeca Andrade

This one looks like one of those pre-loaded Microsoft Windows desktop backgrounds.

Elisabeth Seitz, Germany

Mandatory Credit: Photo by FAZRY ISMAIL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (12241674nl) Germany's Elisabeth Seitz competes for the Women's Uneven Bars Final during the Artistic Gymnastics events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, 01 August 2021. Olympic Games 2020 Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

One thing that's nice about the event finals is, when you're watching NBC, you have an outside shot of seeing athletes from countries that are not the US, Russia, China. It reminds you that the Olympics is in fact a truly international competition with people from ALL OVER, and it makes you further admire the women and men who show up for this knowing they don't have a shot at much -- degree of difficulty does kind of seal the deal for a lot of them before it even starts -- but competing anyway.

Yeo Seojeong, South Korea

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Shutterstock (12242333el) Yeo Seojeong (KOR) - Gymnastics - Artistic : Women's Vault Final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

That's a pretty design, and I think the curvy lines of it are really flattering.

Angelina Melnikova, ROC

This design looks like a very fancy bug.

Angelina Melnikova, ROC

Mandatory Credit: Photo by FAZRY ISMAIL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (12241674gs) Angelina Melnikova of Russia competes in the Women's Vault Final during the Artistic Gymnastics events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, 01 August 2021. Olympic Games 2020 Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

"Why are we so into pastels right now? I CAN'T LOOK."

Angelina Melnikova, ROC

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI/Shutterstock (12242085bd) Angelina Melnikova, of the Russian Olympic Committee, performs on the Uneven Bars in the women's Artistic Gymnastics Individual Apparatus final at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre at the Tokyo Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday, August 1, 2021. Nina Derwael, of Belgium, won gold, Anastasiia Iliankova, of ROC, silver and Sunisa Lee, of United States, the bronze. Tokyo Olympics, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

"JUST DROPPING INTO SAY HI."

Liliia Akhaimova, ROC

Mandatory Credit: Photo by TATYANA ZENKOVICH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (12241674gb) Liliia Akhaimova of Russia competes in the Women's Vault Final during the Artistic Gymnastics events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, 01 August 2021. Olympic Games 2020 Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

This was the vault final. I love that you can't even see any traces of the vault, the springboard, nothing -- it's just contextless floating. The ROC athletes had SO MANY different leotards, too. Maybe it just feels like that because they were represented so strongly.

Shallon Olsen

This top makes me think of a men's figure-skating blouse for some reason.

Fan Yilin, China

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Jeff Roberson/AP/Shutterstock (12241682ar) Fan Yilin, of China, competes in the women's artistic gymnastics uneven bars final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, Japan Olympics Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

This photo is wild to me. These events must be a blast to capture.

Alexa Moreno, Mexico

Mandatory Credit: Photo by TATYANA ZENKOVICH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (12241674dv) Alexa Moreno of Mexico competes in the Women's Vault Final during the Artistic Gymnastics events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, 01 August 2021. Olympic Games 2020 Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 01 Aug 2021

Something about the two-tone color here makes me keep expecting it to have a mock-turtleneck.

Vanessa Ferrari, Italy

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Kohei Maruyama/AFLO/Shutterstock (12243713bt) Vanessa Ferrari (ITA) - Gymnastics - Artistic : Women's Floor Exercise Final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, Tokyo, Japan - 02 Aug 2021

Shh, don't tell, but I thought she deserved to win the floor gold. This is where that degree of difficulty score comes in; Jade's execution score was lower than four of the other five gymnasts, but her difficulty was a 6.3 and those four women went in with a 5.9. I guess that's how it goes, and that's fine, but watching them back-to-back as a layperson was interesting because Vanessa's seemed a firm cut above.

Urara Ashikawa, Japan

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Shutterstock (12245658df) Urara Ashikawa (JPN) - Gymnastics - Artistic : Women's Balance Beam Final Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, Tokyo, Japan - 03 Aug 2021

This is a gorgeous leotard. I wish we'd gotten to see more of it.

Vanessa Ferrari, of Italy, Jade Carey, of the United States, Mai Murakami, of Japan, and Angelina Melnikova, ROC

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ashley Landis/AP/Shutterstock (12243222v) From left, Vanessa Ferrari, of Italy, Jade Carey, of the United States, Mai Murakami, of Japan, and Angelina Melnikova, of the Russian Olympic Committee, pose with their medals for the floor exercise during the artistic gymnastics women's apparatus final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, Japan Olympics Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 02 Aug 2021

And Mai tied for bronze! She wore the same leo with the bronze sleeve, so I guess that's thematic.

Simone Biles

The two Chinese gymnasts got gold and silver on the barre, and Simone was going over to congratulate them, but stopped and watched one wipe away the tears from the other's face. She seems delighted by the kindness. Honestly, Simone looked progressively more relaxed with every passing day; she was more animated in the stands during the event finals than the all-around, and I wonder if that slow release of the pressure valve is what ended up helping her get back up on the beam.

Ellie Black, Canada

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Dave Shopland/Shutterstock (12244880ep) Simone Biles and Elisabeth Black - Women's Balance Beam Final Artistic Gymnastics, Ariake Gymnastics Centre, Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, Japan - 03 Aug 2021

I also really liked this moment of her with Ellie, who hurt herself early and had to drop out of the all-around, but came back to fight another day on beam. I BELIEVE she finished fourth? Her leotard is lovely. Someone should make her a dress out of that floral.

Shin Jea-hwan, South Korea

Mandatory Credit: Photo by YONHAP/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (12243362d) A multiple exposure photograph shows South Korea's Shin Jea-hwan performing during the men's Vault final at the Artistic Gymnastics events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo, Japan, 02 August 2021. Olympic Games 2020 Artistic Gymnastics, Tokyo, Japan - 02 Aug 2021

I love these multiple-exposure pics.

Artur Davtyan, of Armenia

This guy won bronze, which I BELIEVE was Armenia's first medal in gymnastics? He went early and it came down to the last vaulter and I may have been biting my nails for him

Joe Fraser, GB

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Dave Shopland/Shutterstock (12244880t) Joe Fraser - Men's Parallel Bars Artistic Gymnastics, Ariake Gymnastics Centre, Tokyo Olympic Games 2020, Japan - 03 Aug 2021

My favorite part about the parallel bars is that most of the men, in still photos, look like they're freaked out because they looked at their crotch and think they MIGHT have an STD.