Talk of the Games
The medal standings tell only part of the sports story of what's happening at the Games. For the rest, check out the latest dispatches from The Seattle Times' sports crew of columnists, reporters and producers.
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A champion in (fake) blue jeans
Posted by Jerry Brewer
Here's guessing that United States snowboarder Seth Wescott is the first gold medalist ever to claim victory in blue jeans.
Sort of.
Though his pants look like denim, even up close, Wescott was merely wearing trousers made to look like jeans, with holes and all. Those bottoms are actually made from Gore-Tex, so they stay warm and dry. The entire men's and women's snowboarding team are wearing them.
The popular snowboarding apparel and equipment company Burton designed the uniforms. In addition to the "jeans," the team's jackets were made to look like flannel.
"The inspiration behind the U.S. Snowboarding Team outerwear for the 2010 Olympics is classic Americana," Greg Dacyshyn, Senior Vice President of Creative at Burton, said before the Games. "Although we are creating a uniform, our first objective is to express the individuality of snowboarding. As such, we are taking vintage American looks and interpreting them in a very unique and unexpected fashion."
Well, when you win a gold medal, it probably doesn't matter how you look.
Interestingly, fashion has contributed much smack talk among snowboarders. American Nate Holland, who finished fourth, complained last week that the Canadians' pants were too tight and wondered if it gave them a competitive advantage.
"You guys should ask the Canadians why they're wearing such tight pants," Holland said, grinning.
The trash talk continued Monday even after the medalists had been decided. Canadian Mike Robertson, who won the silver, responded to Holland's claims with some humor.
"They made us some pretty tight pants, but I had mine remade as soon as I put them on," Robertson said. "The ones I have on today are pretty legitimate.
"I don't think my pants are that skinny."
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