The Defining Features of Practical Sports Clothing and Why They Are Important
Although this was not always the case, it has become a universal practice for participants in both team and individual sporting activities to wear appropriate sports clothing. For example, when the game so expertly played by our Springboks was first established as a sport by William Web Ellis, a pupil of Britain’s prestigious Rugby School, the players wore red velvet caps with white shirts and trousers bearing mottos of their own choice. Needless to say, such attire was neither a practical choice for a contact sport nor a means to identify individual players and their respective roles.
However, as the game became more organised and its rules established, the need for a more practical uniform could no longer be ignored. Although durable materials are one of the prime requirements for the uniforms worn by players of contact sports like rugby, soccer, and American football, the need to differentiate teams and identify individual players applies to most. Hence, even some darts and snooker teams wear uniforms, as do some players at the world poker tournament.
Whatever the sport or how high the stakes may be, well-designed, comfortable sports clothing can not only assist player performance but can also instill the feeling of shared pride and camaraderie that are essential for building a winning team.
Quality Sports Clothing Should Combine Practicality with Style
While those unusual formal uniforms worn by rugby’s founding fathers were undoubtedly stylish, they were far from practical. Conversely, the kit first worn by female tennis players was suited to the sport but hardly flattering. However, during the intervening decades, there has been a marked transformation in the sports clothing industry, proving beyond doubt that style and practical considerations need not be mutually exclusive.
While features like durability remain essential, especially for players of contact sports, designers now focus more on comfort and the effect it can have on one’s performance. One of the factors that can most affect comfort is the choice of materials used to manufacture high-performance sportswear. The old wool jerseys once worn by footballers and rugby players might have been great for keeping warm in winter, but they were easily torn and inclined to become waterlogged in wet weather. Alternative natural fabrics like cotton and synthetics like Elastane, better known as Spandex or Lycra, polyester, and cotton-polyester blends have long replaced wool to provide shirts and shorts that combine comfort and durability with a hint of style.
Technological advances in materials science have also played a significant role in the evolution of sports clothing. Most manufacturers now leverage advanced fabrics and features designed to optimise the safety, comfort, and performance of the wearer. For example:
- Ergonomic Designs: Eliminating seams or making them as flat as possible helps reduce friction that could otherwise cause distraction due to skin irritation or painful blistering – just what every athlete needs when engaged in prolonged strenuous activity.
- Water-Resistance and Weatherproofing: Treating fabrics with water-repellent or waterproof coatings helps protect athletes in rainy conditions, keeping them warm and preventing hypothermia, a crucial requirement in sports like long-distance running and cycling.
- Compression Technology to Enhance Circulation: Compression garments are not just for neuropathy sufferers, diabetics, and long-distance flyers. The technology has proven equally effective for improving blood flow in athletes, which is crucial for optimal oxygen delivery to the muscles, reducing fatigue, boosting performance, and aiding post-match recovery, especially in high-performance sports.
- Lightweight and Durable Fabrics: Microfibres have become the material of choice for many athletes who favour them because they are light in weight, quick-drying, breathable, and exceptionally hard-wearing. Microfibres are now widely used to manufacture tracksuits, towels, and other sporting wear due to their smooth, non-abrasive surface and superior moisture absorption.
- Stretchability and Optimal Freedom of Movement: Elastane is a generic term applied to branded synthetic textiles like Lycra, which is also sold under the brand name Spandex. The fabric is produced from the long-chain polymer polyurethane, developed in 1937 by Germany’s AG Farben as a substitute for rubber.
In addition, modern sports clothing offers many other features to optimise athletes’ comfort, safety, and performance. These include moisture-wicking fabrics that draw sweat from the skin to the garment’s surface to reduce chaffing and UV-resistant materials to prevent sunburn. These features and more are combined in the ultimate sportswear collection from South Africa’s XCO Group.
Contact us for more information.
