'Fishing for medals' now: German team counters Olympic outfit mockery

The latest German athletes' outfit on the Olympic catwalk that is the opening ceremony has not exactly been deemed a fashion statement but the team is taking the mockery in its stride.

German athletes and officials raised eyebrows when they wore bucket hats and oversized ponchos at Friday night's ceremony in Italian fashion capital Milan and at other venues at Friday night's opening of the Milan/Cortina Winter Games.

The outfit drew comparisons with fisherman's gear to which the team responded on Instagram: "From now on we will be fishing for medals."

Some athletes also reacted with humour, with bobsledder Joshua Tasche throwing himself to the ground and wriggling around like a fish, and pilot Adam Ammour captioning a video of the scene with the words: "The German fishing team is ready for the Olympics."

The black outfit with red and yellow lines for the national colours was designed by sports goods makers Adidas. The team said the red and yellow lines resemble the movement of flames "to symbolise the fire that burns in every athlete."

German fashion designer Harald Glöckler was largely unimpressed, naming the kit "neither innovative nor refreshingly new - let alone appealing."

The ceremony was watched by 5.234 million people in Germany via broadcasters ARD.

The figure is about half the 10.44 million that watched the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 summer Games but more than the 3.77 million that watched the ceremony from the Beijing 2022 snow and ice Games. That ceremony however took place during the German mid-day and not at prime time.