Germany's female gymnasts are preparing to compete at the Tokyo Olympics with a strikingly different look after packing unitards alongside leotards in their kit bags.
The unitard has characteristics of the traditional leotard but comes with attached leggings that run down to the ankles, being designed for comfort.
It was described by the German Gymnastics Federation (DTB) in April as being a move "against sexualisation in gymnastics".
The DTB said the kit's purpose was "to present aesthetically – without feeling uncomfortable", and after a positive pilot at the European Championships in Basle, an Olympic Games version of the kit has been launched for Team Deutschland's competitors.
Elisabeth Seitz, set to compete in her third Olympics, said: "It's about what feels comfortable. We wanted to show that every woman, everybody, should decide what to wear.
"Most people were positive about it. But after the European Championships the time was way too short for others to design a unitard. Maybe in the future. We really hope so."
It is not a given that Germany will wear the unitard for competition at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre, but that is an option. The team will vote on whether to don the leotard or unitard ahead of Sunday's qualification event.
"We decided this is the most comfortable leotard for today. That doesn't mean we don't want to wear the normal leotard any more," Seitz said. "It is a decision day by day, based on how we feel and what we want. On competition day, we will decide what to wear."
The Germany team's move comes at a time when there is scrutiny on the demands put on female sports stars when it comes to their attire.
Norway's beach handball team were fined as their shorts were ruled to be too long, while British Paralympic long-jumper Olivia Breen was told by an official her briefs were too short.
The German gymnasts have found support for their mission, with Games newcomer Sarah Voss saying: "We girls had a big influence on this. The coaches were also very much into it.
"They said they want us to feel the most confident and comfortable in any case. It just makes you feel better and more comfortable."
Biles: Olympic performance beyond my wildest dreams
Simone Biles feels she achieved beyond her "wildest dreams" at the Paris Olympic Games despite failing to add to her three gold medals for the year on Monday.
Having won gold in the team, all-around and vault events, Biles was looking to round off her trip to France with more success in Monday's balance beam and floor finals.
However, the Team USA star fell from the beam and finished fifth in the former event before missing out on gold in the latter, instead taking silver behind Brazil's Rebeca Andrade.
Overall, Biles has now won 11 Olympic medals in total – seven gold, two silver and two bronze.
Larisa Latynina, who won 18 medals for the Soviet Union, is the most successful female gymnast in Olympic history.
She was not upset with herself for failing to get closer to that record, though, telling reporters: "I'm not upset about my performance, I'm actually happy, proud and even more excited that it's over, the stress of it.
"I've accomplished way more than my wildest dreams, not just at this Olympics but in the sport, so I can't be mad at my performances.
"I'm pretty proud of myself and it's always so exciting to compete."
Biles' compatriot Jordan Chiles took bronze in the floor event following a successful appeal to her score, after which the two Americans bowed to Andrade on the podium.
"First, it was an all-black podium so that was super exciting for us but then Jordan was like 'should we bow to her?' and I was like, 'absolutely'," Biles said.
"She's such an excitement to watch. It was just the right thing to do."
Biles wins third gold in Paris with emphatic vault victory
American star Simone Biles collected her third gold medal of the Paris Olympics as she triumphed in the vault final on Saturday.
Biles took her overall Olympics tally to seven gold medals as she recorded an average score of 15.300.
The 27-year-old, who withdrew from several events, including the vault, at Tokyo 2020, is now the third most decorated female gymnast in the history of the Olympics, with 10 medals to her name.
She will take part in the floor and beam finals on Monday, meaning she could overtake Vera Caslavska's tally of 11, won between 1960 and 1968.
Larisa Latynina, with 18 golds, is the most successful female gymnast in Olympic history.
Rebeca Andrade of Brazil, who won gold in Tokyo three years ago, claimed silver, while Biles' team-mate Jade Carey took bronze.
Biles claims sixth Olympic gold medal after glittering all-round final display
Simone Biles claimed her sixth Olympic gold medal following a thrilling conclusion to the gymnastics individual all-round final in Paris on Thursday.
After spearheading the United States to gold in the women's team event, she retained the title she won eight years ago in Rio, edging team-mate Sunisa Lee.
Biles' nine medals (six gold, one silver, two bronze) are two better than Shannon Miller, who won two golds, two silvers and three bronzes across the 1992 and 1996 Games.
"It is crazy I am in the conversation of the greatest of all time," Biles said. "I just think I’m still Simone Biles from Spring, Texas, who loves to flip."
Brazil's Rebecca Andrade finished second on Thursday to get silver and Lee took the bronze in the first Olympic matchup of past all-around champions.
Lee became the first gold medalist to return to the podium in the next Olympics since Romania's Nadia Comaneci won gold and then bronze in 1976 and 1980.
Biles started her quest for gold by scoring 15.766 on the vault, almost half a point better than the score she posted in the qualifying round on Sunday.
The American would relinquish her lead to Andrade after her slight mistake on the uneven bars, with Algeria's Kaylia Nemour posting a rotation-best 15.333.
But the reigning world champion would soon be back on top, producing an error-free routine on the balance beam to earn a score of 14.566, handing her an advantage heading into the floor exercise.
And as she did on Tuesday, Biles showed no signs of pressure and performed a routine packed with a series of stunning tumbles to clinch gold at a canter.
The win made her just the third woman to win two all-around golds and the oldest all-around champion since the Soviet Union's Mariya Gorokhovskaya, who won at the 1952 Games in Helsinki at age 30.
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