ICYMI: The Best (and Worst) Looks at the Rio 2016 Closing Ceremony
Photos courtesy Getty ImagesIzabel Goulart’s Carnival look
We imagine that somewhere deep down Izabel Goulart is quietly telling Gisele to suck it for not going full Carnival during the Opening Ceremony. Goulart also got to share the stage with Samba legend Renato Sorriso, dressed in his street sweeper uniform.
Julia Michaels’ jumpsuit
If you can’t wear your full-body green sequined jumpsuit to the closing ceremony of the Rio Olympics, then when can you? It’s a nice nod to Brazil’s flag, it’s sparkly enough to be seen from space, and yes it’s probably really uncomfortable.
Cuba’s custom Christian Louboutin outfits
Christian Louboutin is best known for his red-soled, staggering high heels worn by celebrities, an aesthetic that seems as far away as possible from an Olympic stadium. So he surprised everyone by teaming up with former French handball player Henry Tai to outfit Cuba for the Olympics, creating entirely custom looks with input from the athletes themselves. Sadly, unlike the Olympic looks from Ralph Lauren, these won’t be available for sale to the masses.
Great Britain’s light up shoes
The flashy sneakers are courtesy of designer Simon Jersey, and are supposed to be a nod to both Great Britain’s flag and Rio’s “love of parties and carnivals.” Mostly though, they make all us grown up viewers at home long for the days when we could wear light up sneakers and not look ridiculous.
USA’s Ralph Lauren outfits
Remember back when they unveiled the closing ceremony looks and it was Ryan Lochte front and center repping for Ralph Lauren? Oh how times have changed. They look much cuter on flagbearer Simone Biles and the rest of the gymnastics team anyway. They also still look like they work on a cruise ship.
Shinzo Abe’s Mario costume
If the preview of Tokyo 2020 is anything to go by, Shinzo Abe is going to be a lot more fun of a host than Michel Temer. For many reasons of course, but his willingness to don a Nintendo costume and jump out of a pipe doesn’t hurt.
Portugal’s denim
You can’t fault Portugal for not sticking to a theme; they wore jeans in the Opening Ceremony, and denim jackets for the closing. Either we missed the part of history where jeans formed a part of Portugal’s national heritage, or someone on the Portuguese Olympic Committee must have a line of denim coming out this fall.
Canada’s mittens
Well, it is technically winter in Brazil we suppose, and it was cold in Rio on Sunday evening. Or maybe they had plans to rock the Canadian tuxedo and then caught wind of the fact that Portugal would be doing the same and had to change course last minute and dig up a bunch of those mittens from Vancouver 2010.
Tonga’s Pita Taufatofua
Tonga had its moment in the spotlight and will hold on to it for dear life, bringing a greased up Pita Taufatofua to the stage for the second time. We may go back to forgetting about Tonga in a few weeks time, but we’ll always have Pita.