Review of the Most Interesting Leotards at the World Championships 2017 in Pesaro!

Dina Averina, the «Black Swan» leotard. Hoop routine, finals.

One of the brightest leotards at the World Championships 2017 in Pesaro was accepted to be the Dina Averina’s costume for her performance with a hoop because it is still being discussed. This outfit was first seen at the Challenge Cup 2017 that was held in Kazan.

Why was it so eye-catching for judges and viewers? The brightest feature of the costume is an unusual and interesting skirt construction. This is a new word in the history of rhythmic gymnastics so far because there have never been such extraordinary and bright leotards before.

An abundant placer of crystals, real swan feathers, proficient fastening, - it is certain that several days were spent for creation of this leotard. The frame and the imitation of feathers on a hard foundation outstand at once - each detail creates a full and finished picture identifying a delicate girl with black and white swans at the same time.

The Dina’s image changes drastically during her performance. This is the peculiarity thanks to which this leotard takes the first place in our list. Feathers are directed upwards and their dark side is seen. Then with a light gymnast’s movement of hand a white part goes down changing the skirt’s form as well as its color. A transformation from a black swan to a white one is vividly seen.

A traditional upper part of this leotard emphasizes a unique skirt that doesn’t make the gymnast look heavy. It is known that external parameters are a critical question in this kind of sport. Ordering a leotard gymnasts always point at this: “We are not allowed to look heavy in a leotard, we must fly”.

The only downside of this leotard is that it can be worn just once. It has an exclusive cutting. That’s why it can’t be worn at any other competitions. Even if this leotard is copied in another color, for example, in order to create a flamingo’s image, the effect will be lost.

Leotards of the Russian team at group exercises with two ropes and three balls.

Red leotards have really become very famous – it is a combination of Oriental ethnic motives and armors of the Amazons. Leotards are about 4 years old but they have played out in fresh colors having been mixed with new bright leggings. Thanks to them the image became brighter and stronger. This is a distinctive feature of the Russian team – kneehighs, leg-warmers and leggings as an addition to a costume.

A picture on the legs’ front side emphasizes even more how advantageous these costumes look on slim bodies of the Russian gymnasts. The image looks complete thanks to the line of ornament that visually lasts from body to feet. The pattern also visually elongates the whole silhouette. It makes legs look slimmer.

The usage of leggings is also connected with the age of gymnasts. Experienced gymnasts are allowed to use more mesh in their costumes and leggings in order to create a complete image.

Arina Averina: ribbons, finals

This is a beautiful, flowery and cheerful leotard-sarafan in a folk style made to a Hungarian dance Csardas. It is a classical costume where kneehighs are emphasized on the gymnast’s legs with elements of plant ornaments that match the style and the color of the whole leotard. It is necessary to imagine how these kneehighs are going to look on a gymnast because such a continuous pattern can make gymnast’s legs look shorter. This is a very individual decoration.

The neck hole of this leotard also looks unusual. Instead of a standardised cut designers made an imitation of a deep decollete with shoulder straps. The pattern made of crystals and beads looks like a necklace. The collar, that has a semicircle fixture, also makes the leotard one of a kind. This detail make people realize that the costume belongs to a folk style. Thanks to special shoulder straps that go from the decollete line to shoulders, there is no need in sleeves even in those that are made of bodily mesh.

In fact not all coaches are brave enough to choose such elements for a gymnast’s image because they can be a distraction during performance. In this case that can’t help but agree that Irina Usmanova-Viner is not only a great innovator in the sphere of technically complicated routines, she is also an outstanding designer of girls’ costumes.

Katrin Taseva: ribbon, finals

According to a color combination it is a very beautiful and “delicious” leotard. It is bright and gentle at the same time. Diagonally vertical lines at both sides of this leotard visually outstretch the silhouette, they narrow it down. Sewn on crystals- “candies” outstand very well. This is a pretty unusual method, they are rarely seen at competitions. There is a very beloved fringe. It is often made of mesh and it looks like noodles. It can also be sewn on as a whole bunch. Thanks to an amazing choice of colors and a unique leotard’s decoration with flowers the image turned out to be gentle and feminine. It suits Katrin Taseva very well.

Salome Pazhava: clubs, finals

A Georgian gymnast, Salome Pazhava, is also justly presented in our rating. She is exuberant and remarkable. She is adored by all fans and judges thanks to her sophisticated, complicated and rich with emotions elements and bright, extraordinary costumes.

This is a comment that we heard from our designer after Salome’s performance: “When I first saw this leotard, I couldn’t tear myself away from the screen. I was speechless. I remembered the name of this gymnast thanks to the leotard in order to find the record of this performance later and watch it one more time”.

This is a leotard-effect: it must astonish and occupy all attention at once. It really copes with it. Such a dark color, a moderate disposition of crystals, smooth drafts and sharp asymmetrical lines: it can be watched for a very long time. There are leotards-spots when you look at them and understand that you are tired although its bright colors should be a delight for the eye. In this leotard you look from crystal to crystal: the amount and the disposition of crystals make this leotard effective.

If all crystals are put away from this costume, it won’t seem to be so bright and eye-catching. There are supposedly about 7-8 thousands of glue on crystals and 100-150 sewn on ones. This is a handwork of a specialist. Because of such a big number of crystals it weighs more. There is one more brave method: to visually broaden the shoulders’ width due to a collar’s design. It is a band-collar with plaits. Some people see a dragon’s image in them, others see a rough ocean but this is undoubtedly a brave trait. The collar is split and structurally broken up with crystals. That’s why it seems to look heavy but soaring at the same time.

In fact when designer knows that there is going to be a lot of crystals, a simple foundation of costume like a little black dress or a setting for a precious stone is chosen.

Delicious elements attract attention: a dark bracelet with big crystals at Salome’s leotard makes the image complete. Crystals look incredible in motion.

Arina Averina: ball, all-around

The Arina’s leotard reminds of a costume of an Indian ethnic direction although Arina performs to a well-known song of an Italian singer, Simona Molinari, “La Felicita”. Such an unusual leotard completes the whole gymnast’s image.

A tutu-skirt is a very bright and very volumetric model. It moves away from a body frame in motion visually enlarging the back part of the costume and making the skirt look bigger. The routine should be created taking into account this construction during performance.

An original decision of designers in this leotard is a symmetrical disposition of fringe at an upper and down parts of the costume at both sides. It decorates the leotard creating no troubles for a gymnast during performance. In general, a leotard turned out to be bright as if a tropical bird flew to a carpet.

The fringe by the way caused serious arguments among our designers. The whole manufacturing department was divided into 2 sides. The first group thinks it is a classical fringe, another group thinks it is a special thread with bugle beads and seed beads that is sewn to the leotard through crystals. This fringe with bugle beads has never been used in rhythmic gymnastics. This decoration can be generally seen at costumes for ballet or Oriental dresses.

Although feathers as well as fringe came from ballet dances, they were first used for skirts. Now they move upwards along the leotard continuing its pattern. Moreover, panties became smaller and smaller because of an increase of crystals’ insets. All this is done in order to make the silhouette narrower.

Dina Averina: ball, all-around

This leotard was originally created for Margarita Mamun. It is about 3 years old. The Russian team has a lot of leotards. They are kept and get prepared for further gymnasts. They get changed according to measurements. Then the way they look on gymnasts is checked during the trials. Both Averina sisters are now often seen in Mamun and Kudryavtseva’s costumes. New costumes have been sewn for them for the World Championship.

A specific trait of Dina’s leotard is just one sleeve that is visually separated or even torn away from the basic part. This effect is achieved thanks to mesh. If you look attentively enough, you can see that there is no sleeve on another hand at all. Earlier only Ukrainian gymnasts performed this way. Now this design is used for costumes of the Russian gymnasts as well. Just remember Margarita Mamun’s leotard for her clubs performance at the Olympic Games in Rio.

Blue butterflies also prolong the silhouette. This element has one disadvantage. During performance such elements always get crinkles and lose their original look.

Arina Averina: clubs, finals

A bright leotard-corset was also originally created for Margarita Mamun’s performance at the Olympic Games in Rio. Clubs routine to a popular song of an immortal group “We Will Rock You” really rocked the sport hall. This is the leotard that made leotards without skirt fashionable again.

Such a vaudevillian design of this costume emphasizes Arina’s style very well. It looks perfect on this gymnast’s slender body. All vertical lines of this costume are big sewn on crystals on a dark base layer. They play an important role in leotard’s decoration. A minimalistic design, a lack of sleeves and leggings create a complete, vivid and energetic image that matches perfectly a song of an Austrian group Opus “Life is Life”.

The Russian team: all-around, 5 hoops

There are elements of embroidery in the leotards of the Russian team. The whole fron that is embroidered in a Russian folk style looks similar with the latest Dolce & Gabbana’s collection. The theme of these costumes reminds dresses from this fashion house. Leotards look as if they were made from different pieces of embroidery. Due to this fact flowers look volumetric and vivid and gymnasts look like beautiful fragile vases. It is very well seen how light plays on the gymnasts’ skirts. The shades of fringe change at different twists.

Leggings have become a favourite part of the Russian gymnasts’ costumes. They make leotards complete. In general, this flowery composition matched perfectly to a chosen music that was created out of three different songs that at first sight may seem to be impossible to be put together.

Dina Averina: ribbon, finals

This is an incredibly beautiful unitard. The flounces, that were used in order to make a rose, are usually rarely used and are more moderate. It can be said for sure that material of such length and width isn’t usually used for creation of volumes. So, this is a very brave step. Even the color is very expressive and a contrast to the whole image. An inset made of bodily mesh visually makes Dina’s legs endless. A rose from the unitard was seen at fashion runways in different forms and colors several years ago. Many ideas from fashion runways are used for creation of the Russian team’s costumes. They look really spectacular.

Alexandra Agiurgiuculese: ball, finals

We want to remind you that this Italian gymnast got an award “Miss Elegance”. She is the main rival of Milena Baldassarri. Here is a classical color combination in this leotard: blue, white and light blue. There are crystals and a light chiffon skirt. A misplaced shoulder line outstands. This line is hot and happening not only at fashion runways but in life as well. A slightly open collar that is decorated with crystals doesn’t look like in usual leotards.

A note from designers: it is really surprising if she got her award thanks to this leotard because it is very plain and standardized. A skirt is usual, a corset is usual. This is the most popular leotard’s model.

Kaho Minagawa: ball, finals

A special train of a Japanese gymnast, Kaho Minagawa, is its unique skirt decorated with crystals. It looks beautifully in motion. Our designers liked the total color of this costume: lilac, a little blurry, smoky. A soft and pleasant decoration was chosen perfectly well for this costume. This is the leotard that could have got an award “Miss Elegance” because of its complicated patterns and a classical сut.

Milena Baldassarri’s leotards

Hoop, qualifications

We are still impressed with a beautiful pink leotard for Milena’s hoop routine. It took more time and efforts to manufacture this costume than any other ones (We want to remind that all leotards for Milena Baldassarri were created by our Gymnastics Fantastic company). The whole leotard was originally white. Laces were sewn to it and then they were toned into pink and lilac colors and all possible shades. Leotard’s painting took 15 hours. And placing of crystals took about 6 hours. There are 6700 crystals of all possible sizes plus beads. On the whole there are 9000 of different stones.

A skirt of this leotard is also very unique. Sometimes it disappears. It was Milena’s wish. The gymnast feels comfortable this way. Moreover, she wanted this skirt to be light. It can be done only with the use of a special material: veiling. When gymnast jumps, the skirt moves and it looks like a wing of a dragonfly. A transparent and shimmering skirt flies easily over the carpet.

Ball, qualifications

This is a leotard of a deep blue color that looks like a night sky full of stars. Our designers saw this leotard only during our interview because they missed the Milena’s performance because of the working day. There are about 7000 crystals, intriguing shoulder straps and lacing. According to designers’ words lacing is popular not only for everyday clothes but for sport ones as well. It is almost everywhere: in dresses of fashionable collections, shoes and even in accessories.

It is difficult to imagine how all crystals were placed to this light skirt. The secret is simple: the lower part of the skirt is made of mesh. This is how this effect of lightness is achieved. Then designers used smoky tone in order to make color blurry and placed crystals to the skirt. Taking into account that leotard was manufactured without fittings designers were pleased with the way gymnast’s legs looked. She seemed to become 10 cm taller. Milena made a right choice of a ball for this routine – silver color emphasized all peculiarities of this leotard.