If it were up to the Internet, Team Mongolia would win gold in the competition for the most drops at the Paris Olympics.
The uniforms, by Mongolian couture brand Michel & Amazonka, have taken hold on social media. Fans have praised the striking designs and intricately embroidered vests, dresses and accessories, which heavily feature cultural motifs and will be worn during the opening ceremony on July 26.
TikToker Ryan Yip, whose video showcasing the outfits has received more than 424,500 likes, affectionately called the aesthetic “sorcery.”
“Tell me what motivated (Michel and Amazonka) and the entire Mongolian Olympic team to go so hard,” Yip said.
Another TikToker, who calls himself Regularguy_sports, put Team Mongolia first in a list of best Olympic uniforms.
“Mongolia looks like they’re going to war,” he said. “They look like they’re going to steal people’s souls in the league.”
Michel & Amazonka, who unveiled the designs in a stunning social media video earlier this month, have designed the outfits for the country’s opening and closing ceremonies for the past two Olympic Games. For the upcoming international event, the label has created separate outfits for male and female flag bearers and athletes that resemble a variation on the traditional Mongolian deel, a calf-length dress that typically features a high collar and long sleeves. The uniforms also incorporate the colors of the Mongolian flag and the Soyombo, the national symbol that also appears on the country’s banner.
To create the uniforms, the brand took detailed measurements of each athlete’s body, they said on social media. The looks took more than three months to complete, with one set taking an average of 20 hours to complete.
Michel Choigaalaa and Amazonka Choigaalaa, the sister duo behind the brand, previously told Forbes that they don’t have to travel far for inspiration.
“Right now, you can find a lot of ideas here in Mongolia, from tradition and culture, because it’s not very well known in the world,” the sisters told the outlet. “People often know it from historical figures like Genghis Khan and from ancient history. But in the present time, you can find a lot of ideas in people’s clothing, the way we do cultural things, ceremonies and things like that.”
Mongolia joins several other countries that have generated buzz for their Olympic swag. Team Haiti has received plenty of love on social media for their vibrant uniforms, which feature artwork by Haitian painter Philippe Dodard and created by designer Stella Jean. Team Nigeria, dressed by Los Angeles-based black label Actively Black, has also received praise for their green-and-white sportswear.
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