The Court is My Runway
An interview, Wimbledon wrap-up, personal shopping and more...
Perhaps you are curious about the rigorous methods I use to compile this newsletter. I wish I could report that I use some ingenious process, the truth is: it’s chaos. Every week I start a new email and send myself ideas, quotes, links, and screenshots in a thread. The best emails are the ones I send as I am falling asleep or mid-way through a run. They are either brilliant or unhinged. There is no middle ground.
Exhibit A: an email I sent with a tagline for my interview series. The concept is to swap in different sports for “road”, so it might be the “court/trail/pool is my runway.” I thought it had great merch potential too. 1
Anyway, I am sharing this because it turns out Sha’Carri Richardson and I are on the same wavelength (hers is much faster and more lucrative). She’s the digital cover star of Vogue’s August issue. In the video that accompanies the story, she delivers her version of FloJo’s iconic quote “Dress good to look good. Look good to feel good. And feel good to run fast!” telling Vogue: “The lane is my catwalk.”
I am considering this “proof of concept.” As such, today I’m beginning The ___ is my Runway: an interview series exploring how women dress for performance.
The Court is My Runway
A Conversation on Tennis Style & Dressing for Performance
To wrap up the Wimbledon fortnight, I spoke with Caitlin Thompson, the founder of Racquet2, a tennis media and lifestyle company that publishes a print magazine, podcast, and a line of merch and collabs. She graciously emailed me questions in between events at Wimbledon. Off the court, she’s a former political journalist, having covered presidential elections for TIME, the Washington Post, and public radio and television, and began her career at Paper magazine.
LG: What was your introduction to tennis? Do you have any memories of what you wore to play as a novice?
CT: My grandmother taught me how to play when I was a kid—and she was truly one of the most stylish people I ever knew. She was a nurse who’d taught herself pattern making and created all of our outfits—many of which matched!
LG: Tenniscore has been trending recently. To what do you credit this rise?
CT: Racquet!
LG: Is there a tennis player whose style you particularly admire?
CT: I like the throwbacks especially since the major manufacturers feel like they’ve been playing it safer than ever with on-court looks. Zizi Zheng’s wild hair and on-court flair is great for the game, I love the way Holger Rune shows us a lot of leg. Emma Radacanu and Daria Kasatkina keep it simple but cool, and I gotta give a shout-out to Alycia Parks, who always looks classic but stunning.
LG: Are there any brands in tennis you think are outpacing the rest?
CT: I think there’s a real gap between the Nikes and Adidases of the world —who are largely asleep at the wheel—and upstarts in the fashion space who are making huge strides. Wilson’s a great example of the latter, and I’m also curious to see what Lacoste will do with their new creative director.
LG: What are your go-to pieces to wear for a match?
CT: I love a skirt with built-in compression and a polo—I love Jupp Sport, a tiny label out of Spain as it’s so flattering, as well as mixing and matching from vintage.
LG: I'm fascinated by trends related to headwear and hair for women's sports. Are you a hat or visor person? Is there a particular way you like to wear your hair when playing?
CT: I have long hair and a small head, so visor is the only way for me!
LG: Is there an item of clothing or gear you wish a brand would make? What is missing from the tennis market right now?
CT: So many things are missing—I wish every collection would be something I would buy—it feels like the kits are made too far in advance and have no dialogue with fashion or with street style. I’d trash 90% of what I see out there and offer to style the players myself.
More Wimbledon Style Notes
If you enjoyed last week’s rumination on tennis aesthetics, CNN’s Jacqui Palumbo published an in-depth examination of the history and culture of the sport’s dress codes.
This week in hairstyle watch: Barbora Krejčíková’s Fila visor and bun took the title, overcoming Jasmine Paolini and her hatless bun. Since we’re keeping track, three out of four Wimbledon semi-finalists wore a visor…
I was rooting for Jasmine Paolini in the finals – it’s hard not to when she’s 5’4” and slaying giants with a major first serve and a killer attitude. Paolini looks great in her Asics kit (and she’s been sponsored by them for a decade), but I am curious if she will go the way of Iga Swiatek and get snapped up by someone like On.
Speaking of On, they dropped a well-timed ad featuring Zendaya and Roger Federer, in which Zendaya challenges Roger to an air tennis match. It riffs on the viral Challengers BTS of Zendaya practicing tennis with her body double. To me, this spot (more than the launch campaign) helps connect the dots between Zendaya and On. She’s a capital P performer, just like Roger Federer. Their athleticism just manifests in different forms.
Has Morgan Riddle taken over your For You Page or is it just me? I want to focus on female athletes, but there’s something to be said about Riddle’s popularity and the attention it has brought to the sport. Love her (like her boyfriend Taylor Fritz) or hate her (like Alexander Zverev), it’s undeniable that she’s generating new fans through her content. More in Vogue UK.
My Tennis Picks
In which I go shopping for you….
Looking to up your tenniscore? Here’s what’s on my radar.
I am obsessed with vintage tee shirts and there are tons of great vintage tennis designs on Ebay, which are perfect for anyone trying to recreate Zendaya’s oversized tee-plus-running shorts look from Challengers.
My sister snagged this colorful US Open ‘93 tee for me at We Thieves in Somerville, MA. The design is classically 90s and looks so good with shorts that my husband has stolen it from me. I spotted another one on Ebay. Buy it here.
A few other Ebay favorites:
A jazzy Prince tee.
A Wimbledon ringer tee that feels straight out of The Parent Trap.
An avante garde option from the US Open. 1993 was a good year:
The French Open has the best posters. I bought this one for my husband, who is a tennis-mad Francophile born in 1984. Should you also have one of those, get it here.
Tall socks are trending. This pair feels perfect for a sporty millennial trying to cosplay as GenZ.
If you’re also on the hunt for the perfect tennis look, I am eyeing this tank and this skirt from Wilson.
Quick Thoughts
Things that drew my eye or my ire…
I’m planning a gymnastics-focused newsletter for during the Olympics, but USA’s leotard reveal was too good not to share. Someone on their PR team (or I guess GK Elite’s) deserves a raise because nothing says “ignore USA Gymnastic’s abusive past” like 10,000 crystals. The leos got coverage in the Times plus Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, the Washington Post, and more. I appreciate all the insider details shared on these designs, but I am seriously side-eyeing the names which include Freedom’s Grace, Luminous Legacy, and Patriotic Poise…
I’m reserving my final review of national team uniforms until the Opening Ceremony, but so far Sierra Leone, Haiti, and Mongolia have some of my favorites. It’s exciting to see smaller nations make major fashion statements, especially in collaboration with up-and-coming designers. Can Team USA drop Ralph Lauren already?
Sha’Carri isn’t the only track athlete gracing fashion magazines this month. British Vogue has been outpacing their American cousin for a while and their styling for heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson is much stronger IMHO. Keely Hodgkinson is on Elle UK (I hate this cover!) and Yulimar Rojas looks out of this world in Vogue Mexico. Here’s a round-up of a host of other Olympians in various Vogues.
Highsnobiety profiled UConn’s Paige Bueckers: “An unassuming music taste, charisma – or as Bueckers’ calls it, ‘rizz’– and a budding fashion sense, distinguishes her from the rest. ‘My style is a mix of feminine and masculine,’ Bueckers tells me. She often combines baggy and fitted wear. Bright colors are her signature. In 2021 she began working with celebrity stylist Brittany Hampton, who dressed her in full Louis Vuitton for the 2024 WNBA draft.“
If you’ve been watching the news, you know that Nike is in need of a few Ws. Much of the criticism is that they’ve lost their way in terms of innovation and creativity. This ad, “What if you can?” aimed at inspiring women in Saudi Arabia shows some of their old flame.
We’ll give Nike a W for this too. If you are a woman born between 1985 and 1995, you likely remember exactly where you were when Brandi Chastain scored her shootout goal at the 1999 Women’s World Cup.3 Nike tapped into our collective nostalgia with this commemorative uniform release for the 25th anniversary. Wearing Soccer jerseys with jeans is trending, if I hadn’t spent my shopping budget on vintage tennis tees I’d be snagging one ASAP.
Speaking of Nike woes, Business of Fashion’s sports reporter Daniel Law-Miller examined why more athletes are looking outside of the Nikes of Adidases of the world for sponsorship deals. “It’s really important young athletes understand that they are a brand themselves. A lot of these brands use their name and image, and then just discard them when they’re done,” said Holo Footwear co-founder Rommel Vega.”
I don’t quite have the bandwidth to cover all the ESPY’s fashion, except to say that Serena Williams looked A+. I also appreciated this Get Ready With Me from Emma Gee. Watch it for a behind-the-scenes look at how Lululemon styled its ambassadors in a mix of activewear and Prada.
Away partnered with Adidas to outfit the US Women’s Soccer team with travel gear.
This Saysh x Ba&sh Paris collab is timely and smart! I’d buy the white/green colorway.
Let’s end with this campaign: Arc’teryx’s striking new products were designed with Indigenous artists.
You will learn. I am obsessed with merch.
Racquet was an early mover in the premium sports magazine space. This recent NYTimes story covers the rise of similar publications in “high-end outdoors.”
I was in Savannah, GA on a Girl Scout trip.
Thanks for reading! Please reach out or comment below with thoughts, corrections, or ideas: leeglandorf@gmail.com.