theSkimm - Weekend: So, Everyone’s a Brat Now? 😈

Chuck Bass, is that you? Earlier this week, Ralph Lauren, which has dressed Team USA for the past nine Olympics and Paralympics, debuted its vision for Paris 2024 — and the internet had thoughts. Central to the opening ceremony outfit is yet another navy blazer, which the brand described as “distinctly modern,” but reads “Gossip Girl” meets 2000s J.Crew (or, as one X user put it, “the mean rich kids from the camp across the lake”). For the closing ceremony, athletes will don a moto jacket that’s drawn comparisons to NASCAR — or, more amusingly, “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.” All of which led one critic to declare: “​​Ralph Lauren must pay for his crimes against fashion.” 

That may be true, but these fits are hardly our worst. Consider the “swackets” of 1968, 1980’s cowboy-inspired look, and Ralph Lauren’s own 2012 berets, which would make even Emily in Paris cringe. That got us thinking about the best and worst outfits various countries have fielded over the years. Even though nothing can top the viral moment in 2016 when a shirtless Tongan flag bearer ignored Olympic officials by wearing his country’s traditional costume (10/10), other highlights from years past include Japan’s rainbow-colored capes (9/10), Great Britain’s ABBA-esque suits (8/10), and Canada’s Canadian tuxedo (we’ll let you be the judge on that one). And when it comes to sartorial competition at this year’s games, there’s an already obvious contender for Best Dressed gold: France. Can we get that jacket in our size?