Designers at Vogue World dish on fashion’s sports obsession

Sign up to receive the Vogue Business newsletter for the latest luxury news and insights, plus exclusive membership discounts. On Sunday, Vogue World landed in Paris to celebrate fashion and sports on the eve of couture week and a month before the 2024 Paris Olympics kick off. Walking the circuit at Place Vendôme were tennis icons Venus and Serena Williams, wearing custom Marine Serre and custom Off-White by Ib Kamara, respectively; NBA star Victor Wembanyama wore Louis Vuitton; and NFL quarterback Joe Burrow walked the show in Peter Do. They were joined by celebrities including TikTok phenomenon Sabrina Carpenter, who wore Jacquemus, and Katy Perry in a dress from Noir Kei Ninomiya’s Autumn/Winter 2019 collection. Performances included Aya Nakamura in a Jean Paul Gaultier dress and Bad Bunny, while Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid rode horses across the square in Hermès. Designers Pharrell Williams, John Galliano, Sarah Burton, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Jean Paul Gaultier, Pierpaolo Piccioli and Thom Browne sat front row alongside Anna Wintour. The result was a grand display of just how intertwined the worlds of fashion and sport have become. The show looked back, decade by decade, at the last century of French fashion and how it relates to sports (cycling in the 1920s, track and field in the 1930s, aquatics in the 1940s, equestrian in the 1950s, fencing in the 1960s, gymnastics in the 1970s, martial arts in the 1980s, football in the 1990s, tennis in the 2000s and breakdance in the 2010s.) There were 500 talents (athletes, dancers, singers alongside celebrities and models walking the Place Vendôme runway in looks) and 800 guests. Parris Goebel, the choreographer behind Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show, oversaw the breathtaking choreography and there were performances happening on all sides of the square’s famous column. It left guests star-struck. “It was wild,” Mugler creative director Casey Cadwallader said after the show. For designers, sports are increasingly key: athletes are part of their VIP strategy, they innovate with performance fabrics and collaborate with sportswear brands. The looming arrival of the Olympic Games in Paris next month makes it even more top of mind. “Athletes are heroes of our time. There’s so much beauty and diversity in sports. I try to always work with athletes, they often have amazing stories,” says Simon Porte Jacquemus, who presented poolside-ready pieces inspired by the 1940s at Vogue World. (Carpenter performed wearing one of them.) The designer, known for his spectacular shows, says he would have liked to stage the Olympic ceremonies. He will launch a new collection and a film with Nike mid July. Rabanne had four silhouettes, as part of the space-age tableau of the show. Its creative director Julien Dossena is inspired by sports in several ways: “movement, body awareness, performance fabrics”. Mugler’s Cadwallader says he likes technology in sportswear: “I design for people who are moving on stage — it has to be engineered in a stronger way.” “I loved the gymnastics part,” Courrèges artistic director Nicolas Di Felice enthused. (The gymnastics part of Vogue World was a nod to the 1970s and involved choreography by gymnasts in leotards as well as models wearing flowing capes, referring to the Battle of Versailles in 1973 where French and American designers put on a show.) “In the pre-collection that we are selling now, we have leggings and versatile tops that I am sure you can wear for pilates and yoga.” With the Olympics in Paris, too, comes disruptions to the local fashion industry. Dossena plans to stay in Paris during the Olympics, even though the games will keep teams working from home. “I'm working but I don’t think we can get into the office. It’s going to be the return of the Zoom meetings,” he says. Ludovic de Saint Sernin will stay in town, too. “I have got a collection to make so I'll stay here,” he says. “My mom got tickets for Olympics competitions and I might join.” Cadwallader, however, plans to leave: “We moved our vacation earlier this year, that’s good because we have a longer run before the show in September.” Designers are factoring in sports inspiration to their collections. “I like the technical performance of sportswear. When I design a collection, I try to apply the same level of ease to everyday [clothes],” says Louise Trotter, creative director of Carven, who is an active cyclist and tennis player. Serre’s custom look for Venus Williams was made from repurposed tennis bags. “In my shows and campaigns, I always feature many athletes. Sports are important. It’s important to take care of your body, it allows you to live and create. I have a sports mentality I inherited from my childhood [she played a lot of tennis when younger]. A designer is a marathon runner, not a sprinter,” Serre says. With the Olympics come opportunities too. “We might dress one or two people,” says Arnaud Vaillant, one half of the Coperni duo with Sébastien Meyer. They have had a collaboration with Puma for three years. “We worked with their innovation team and Sébastien went to Vietnam to make the mould for the shoes.” Lacoste created 30 looks for athletes at Vogue World and four silhouettes for the runway show. “Sport and fashion are intricate. They’re a flirtation between the two,” says Lacoste creative director Pelagia Kolotouros. Lacoste just released an “Olympic heritage” capsule collection paying tribute to the Paris 1924 Olympics. “We'll probably see a trickle-down effect [of the Paris 2024 Olympics on the collections] in September. I think it’s on everybody’s mind.” Comments, questions or feedback? Email us at feedback@voguebusiness.com. More from this author: Key takeaways from Paris Fashion Week Men’s The final show: Behind the scenes with Dries Van Noten French fashion industry fears impact of the far right

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