Stella McCartney Reveals Great Britain's New Olympic Uniforms

British triple jumper Phillips Idowu, left, and heptathlete Jessica Ennis pose wearing the new Olympic uniforms designed by Stella McCartney. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
British triple jumper Phillips Idowu, left, and heptathlete Jessica Ennis pose wearing the new Olympic uniforms designed by Stella McCartney. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

Fashion designer Stella McCartney unveiled her ideas for Great Britain's Olympic uniforms at the Tower of London on Thursday (and we have to admit, it was kind of a treat to see her cool designs adorning toned, sculpted, athletic bodies instead of dangerously stick-thin models). The edgy outfits feature a deconstructed British Flag, the adidas logo, and plenty of red, white, and dark blue.

McCartney, who is the creative director of the Summer Olympic Games for athletic giant adidas, told the Associated Press that she hopes everyone will be proud of the athletes who will wear the new uniforms at this summer's Olympic and Paralympic games.

"The basic message is to unify the team," McCartney said. "The athletes all want to feel like one team. The other big starting point for me was the Union flag, an iconic flag, I think every Briton is so proud of it, but I wanted to look at it in a different way." Her designs had been kept secret for months, and the line includes training gear, a more-formal "presentation suit," competition uniforms, footwear, and accessories. Instead of simply plastering the Union Jack across the ever article of clothing, she featured different components of the flag in different places.

"I wanted to make it slightly more delicate and feminine, while still keeping the masculinity in some ways," she explained. She also had to think differently about how her designs would function, instead of focusing solely on how they would look.

"There are seams you can't mess up, there's tons of things, home and away kits, in gymnastics you have to have symmetry or you're marked down," McCartney said. "But it's been an incredible journey."

So far, the reaction from the people who will wear the new uniforms has been positive.

"Looking good is psychologically important but my sprint suit is also technically advanced," Triple jumper Phillips Idowu said. "So not only do I look good but I also have confidence in the technology."

Click through the slideshow (above) to see the rest of McCartney's collection. What do you think?

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