Wednesday, July 29, 2015

The best and worst leotards from the 2015 Secret Classic

There was lots of excitement last weekend at the Secret Classic from returning Olympians, to new skills being debuted, all the way down to the leotards. We ranked some of the leotards from the 2015 Secret Classic from worst to best on a 5 point scale (with 5 being the highest score) to determine which leos were truly the best on the competition floor! The members on our panel include gymnastics fans Lauren Stevens, Patrice Vandenbos, and Sara Neushwander. Do you agree with our opinions? Write some of your favorite/least favorite leotards below! 

Nia Dennis/ Legacy Elite

Ashlee: I give Legacy Elite props for always choosing bright colored leotards in attempt to stand out on the competition floor, however- I'm not feeling the blue and purple here. It just doesn't look right. Score: 1.5

Brittany: Wasn't a fan of this leotard from the moment I saw it! Hate the design and the color combination. Score: 1

Lauren: I've liked this design for awhile and it really works well when you get the right color combos. But this color combo is just a no... The black bottom makes the turquoise and magenta clash and it just doesn't look good. Definitely not my cup of tea. Score: 1.5

Patrice: No comment. Can I give this a -5? Score: 0

Sara: It never surprises me when I show up to a meet and wind up hating Legacy Elite’s leos.  Maybe it’s just that I’m sick and tired of their typical purple?  Regardless, you all can call me "Not Impressed McKayla" on this one.  It just wasn’t a leotard that made me want to keep my eyes on her.  Gabby Perea wore the same leotard, but white instead of black, and I wish Nia would have too because I thought it looked much nicer.  Score: 2

Final Score: 1.2

Emily Gaskins/North Port


Ashlee: The design is okay, I'm just not a fan of the orange and purple together, so that kind of ruins it for me. I could handle just orange and white I think, but the purple is too much. Score: 2

Brittany: Emily is such a beautiful and elegant gymnast, this crazy leotard just doesn't match her style in my opinion. I think the color combination is tacky. Orange and purple? Really.. Score: 2

Lauren: I really like the design of this leotard... The rhinestones are great.. But the colors are... UGH! Orange and purple just don't go well together. This leotard could've been gorgeous... But I just can't stand the color combo. Score: 2.5

Patrice: I like the pattern, but not the colours. I feel like I'm looking at orange is the new black - gymnast style. Score: 2

Sara: I absolutely adore Emily Gaskins.  When I saw her in this leotard, I actually cringed a little.  This was one of my least favorite leos of the whole competition, which was disappointing.  The orange and purple clash terribly, plus I don’t think the orange goes well with Emily’s skin tone.  I always envision Emily in darker, more elegant color tones because of the grace and artistry she shows in her gymnastics.  This leo just doesn’t work for Emily’s style of gymnastics and personally, I think her floor routine would be much more beautiful in a solid color, simple leotard (Example: the black and white leotard CGA wore at 2013 Classics). Score: 1.5

Final Score: 2

Sydney Johnson Scharpf/ Brandy Johnson's

Ashlee: Three different shades of pink and then black? No no no no. I don't like the black collar or the flower design either. (You can't really see it in this picture....thank goodness.) I can't think of any gymnast who could pull this leo off. Score:

Brittany: At first glance this leotard isn't horrible. But the more and more I analyze it I'm not a fan of the black collar. I think the leotard would have turned out better if there was only one shade of pink up top. Score: 2

Lauren: I love the design of this leotard. The colors are great and the whole design totally fits Sydney's personality! I would totally give this a 5 if the "collar" was either thinner and still black, or a different color and still the same thickness. Score: 4

Patrice: STOP NECKCOLLARS 2K15! PLEASE! And studded?! UGH. *considers writing a letter to the FIG asking them to ban high neck collars* Score:

Sara: I love Syd, and I love this leotard.  It’s fun and a little bit spunky, while also being beautiful and classy.  I think it fit Sydney’s style and personality.  To put it simply, it fits the age.  I’m not sure I could ever envision it on a Senior gymnast, but for Sydney being so young, it works!  The colors go well together and, the more I look at it, the more I love it on her. Score: 4.5

Final Score: 2.5

Mykayla Skinner/ Dessert Lights

Ashlee: There's nothing wrong with this leotard except for the color. If you're only going to have one color on your leo WHY would you pick pepto bismo pink?! Yuck! Score:

Brittany: I honestly don't know why I don't like this leo? Maybe it's because there is literally NOTHING going on with it. Like literally nothing. So very boring. It could definitely use a pattern somewhere on it to help break up some of the pink. Score: 2.5

Lauren: Ok... I really thought we were making a breakthrough with all of these red and blue leos at this year's Classics... But this pink leotard just ruined it. It's actually a gorgeous design when there's more than one color with it. But other than that this leotard is just no... Especially with the spandex, mesh, and mystique combo. Score: 2 

Patrice: You know, normally I like pink. This is almost too pink, too glossy. and entirely too overdone. There's just too much pink. It's like a pepto bismo ad. "Feel better so you can do flips!" Score:

Sara: I hate myself for loving this leotard.  And I hate that I’m contradicting myself about what I said about finally moving on from #hotpinknation. I’m not afraid to say that I’m not a fan of Skinner, but I can’t deny that I didn’t adore this leotard on her all day.  It goes beautiful with her hair and her skin tone and really makes her stand out from the other gymnastics – but in a good way.  I just thought it was perfect on her.  Score: 4.5

Final Score: 2.6

Christina Desiderio/ Parkettes
Ashlee: On the live feed this leo looked pink and in pictures it looks purple?!? Either way it reminds me of Barney! The design isn't bad, once again I just really don't like that color. Score: 3

Brittany: I'm conflicted. Part of me kinda likes this and part of me doesn't. The design is pretty, I love the shade of light purple on the sleeves, but not the darker purple body. It looks so harsh in comparison. Score: 3

Lauren: I'm just really not a fan of this leotard.. The design isn't all the great and I'm not a fan of the color of the sleeves. If the sleeves would've been white or silver, I probably would've liked it more. Score: 2.5

Patrice: I love this! It's simple and elegant! I think I would have liked it more if the sleeves were white, but overall it's a good choice! Score: 4

Sara: I didn’t pay close attention to the Parkette leotards during the meet, but now that I’m looking back at them, I’ll admit that they are great.  I thought it looked fantastic on each one of the girls and I thought the amount of sparkles – especially on the sleeves  - was the perfect touch.  Has this leo been done in a royal blue?  Because I think that would look stunning, as well. Score: 4

Final Score: 3.3


Jazmyn Foberg/ MG Elite

Ashlee: I like the aqua blue color, I thought it looked beautiful on Laurie and Jazzy. I'm just not a big fan of the nude sleeve and then the mesh sleeve on the other arm that you can't really see in the picture. It's still a nice leotard, it just might have looked better with white mesh. Score: 3.5

Brittany: MG Elite usually wears some pretty out of the box leotards, I think we can all agree on that! While I think Laurie and Jazzy looked beautiful in this, I'm not really a fan of the nude sleeve on one arm. Maybe if it was white I would like it better? Score: 2.5

Lauren: This is a super simple leotard compared to what MG Elite usually wears. I love the shade of blue and the amount of rhinestones is perfect for the simplicity of this leotard. However, I do wish the nude mesh was either white mesh or white mystique. Overall, both Laurie and Jazzy both pulled off this leotard super well! Score: 3

Patrice: There is so much good in this leo except for the mesh! I would have liked this if the blue was paired with something other than nude mesh. Score: 2.5

Sara: I LOVE the MG Elite girls but I don’t always love their leotards.  Whether it was a collar or the wrong color, there have been very few that have impressed me.  Until this one. I could not keep my eyes off of Laurie and Jazzy in these leos!  I’ve been obsessed with them from the second I saw them. They are sleek, sophisticated, and beautiful and they make both of the girls look stunning.  I’m sitting here re-watching Jazzy’s beam and I’m still drooling over it.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the color has something to do with Florida Gators blue, as both Laurie and Jazzy have committed here. Maybe that’s why I think it’s so freakin’ awesome? Score: 5

Final Score: 3.3

Anna Huber/ Rochester Gymnastics

Ashlee: I like this leotard a lot, it's classy and very pretty! This would look great on the international scene too! It actually reminds me a lot of the one Kyla wore in beam finals at Worlds in 2013. Score: 4

Brittany: Didn't the US wear this at World's last year? Looks familiar. Regardless, I like it! Nothing really negative to say about it. Score: 4

Lauren: I love red and white color combos. This leotard is simple, but it works well on Anna. It could have a few more rhinestones on the sleeves. But overall it's a simple & classy leotard! Score: 3

Patrice: I like this! It's cute. I love the red and white, but the white almost goes down too much. Score: 3

Sara: I really like the simplicity of this leo.  It isn’t overly flashy nor do I think it is plain or boring.  I think it is one of those leotards that would look good on almost any gymnast and would sophisticated for the USA at international meets. Score: 3.5

Final Score: 3.5

Ragan Smith/Texas Dreams


Ashlee: I don't hate this leo, but I also don't love it. I always appreciate Texas Dreams creativity, I think the spray paint idea is cool. There's just something not right about this leotard...maybe it's the design on the side I don't like? Score: 3.5

Brittany: At first when I saw this I was like "eww no", but it started to grow on me as the meet progressed. It's very creative and I think the splatter paint idea is pretty sweet looking actually! I think all the Texas Dreams girls looked adorable in this! Score: 4

Lauren: I'm really not sure how I feel about this leotard.. I don't love it.. But I don't hate it (although their matching warm ups are to DIE for). The spray paint print is super unique and not something I ever expected to see. All the girls really pulled off this leotard well. Overall it was a cute leotard, even with it's simplicity. Score: 3.5

Patrice: Texas dreams always shows up with the most creative but strange leos. I love Kim but this was a bad leo choice. The fact that it's mostly black helps make up for it. Kind of... Sorry. Score: 2

Sara: TEXAS DREAMSSSS!  Watching the meet in person, I couldn’t really see the paint splatter design.  So for me, the leotards looked entirely black and white.  Which I thought was fantastic.  Then when I discovered the multi-colored paint splatter, I got even more excited. TD is a classy, well respected club and I thought the black and white fit that description perfectly.  The paint splatter also reminded us of the personality of not only the girls, but the coaches.  Why not spice up a simple leotard with some fun pops of color for the girls?  Personally, I love love love loved it and wouldn’t mind seeing it again. Score: 5

Final Score: 3.6


Aly Raisman/ Brestyans

Ashlee: I think Aly looks nice in this leotard, red is her color for sure! I'm just not a big fan of the overall design; the neck tie part looks odd to me. I think Aly pulled it off though! Score: 3.5

Brittany: I feel like this leotard suits Aly so well! It's very mature and her matching red lipstick looked just fab with it. Oh my god, this girl could literally rock a paper bag and still look beautiful. Great design Aly! Score: 3.5

Lauren: Aly always pulls off red really well. The only thing I don't like about this leotard is the rhinestone placement. Someone on Twitter said that this leotard kind of looks like an "evil face" and now I can't not see it lol! But Aly rocked this leotard and you can really never go wrong with red. Score: 4

Patrice: I LOVE THAT ALY WORE HER OWN LEO TO CLASSICS. I love this. It's perfect. The minimalism with the hot red and glitter gives a mature, and elegant look - perfect for Aly. I'm not sure if I would have liked this leo on any other gymnast, so I'm giving this a 4.5 Score: 4.5

Sara: This leotard was gorgeous on Aly.  She always looks amazing in red.  But, similar to Maggie’s, it reminds me of something familiar.  But I still think it was a smart choice for Aly’s debut and worked well with her body and her style of gymnastics (and her lipstick!). Rank: 4

Final Score: 3.9

Morgan Hurd/ First State

Ashlee: I like this one the more and more I look at it. The design is elegant and the rhinestones are a nice touch. Great pick for the adorable Morgan Hurd! Score: 4

Brittany: This leotard looked purple on the feed, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE that shade of blue! This is such a beautiful leotard. The rhinestone detailing is gorgeous and I can't get over how much I love that blue! AHHH! Yes Morgan! Score: 4.5

Lauren: This had to be one of my favorite leotards of the night. We rarely see blue mesh and it looks absolutely gorgeous with the white bodice. There's a perfect amount of rhinestones and it's just an all-around elegant and gorgeous leotard. Score: 5

Patrice: After I get over how adorable Morgan is, I love this leo! I wouldn't have done a white bottom half, but if the colours were reversed this would have been my fave leo from classics! Score: 4

Sara: Is she attempting to qualify for JO Nationals or elite Nationals?  Because this leotard might as well have been plucked directly from the Region 5 Dream Team (Yes, I’m aware Delaware is not a part of Region 5…even though they probably want to be since Region 5 is the obvi greatest, IMO). Personally, I didn’t find anything remotely interesting about this leotard.  I keep looking at pictures and watching Morgan Hurd’s routines, and I’m trying REALLY hard to like it, but I just can’t. There isn’t anything about it that I find special or unique.  But hey, if you want to throw it over here to the Midwest, those girls in Region 5 would look sharp. Score: 2

Final Score: 3.9

Simone Biles/ World Champions Centre

Ashlee: I like this leotard, I think it looks great on Simone! I'm not a huge fan of the pattern in the middle, but I can tolerate it. Score: 4

Brittany: This leotard isn't horrible! Simone looks amazing in it, however I'm not that big of a fan of that neck part... Score: 3.5

Lauren: I LOVE the color combos of this leotard. I like the design too. It's only two colors, but it's still pretty. There's just something about the design which made me not want to give this leotard a 5... But I just can't figure it out! This leotard was one of my favorites and really looked good on al of the WCC girls! Score: 4

Patrice: I love blue on Simone. I'm not a fan of the neck pattern in the middle, but overall the leo isn't bad! Score: 4

Sara: If it were up to me, the USA would be wearing this leotard internationally.  The metallic blue looked bomb on each one of the World Champion girls and was simple yet sophisticated.  This was a great choice, especially for Simone.  What else would you expect from the #1 gymnast in the entire world? Score: 4.5

Final Score: 4

Maggie Nichols/ Twin City Twisters

Ashlee: I LOVE LOVE LOVE this leo. It's simple yet gorgeous. All of the TCT girls pulled it off really well. This gave me Maggie Nichols at Oklahoma feels all night long! Score: 5

Brittany: You can never go wrong with a classic white/red leo! I believe this is the same leotard Maggie wore last year at Nationals except blue (and I loved that one!) so to see a red version is great! This leotard has just the right amount of rhinestones-so beautiful and simple! Score: 5

Lauren: I LOVE this leotard. When we saw the blue version last year, I loved it, and I love this one just as much! Red and white goes so well together and I just love the rhinestones on it.Definitely one of my favorites from the whole competition. Score: 4.5

Patrice: I LOVE THIS LEO. It's like a Queen of Hearts/Classy/I'm a badass gymnast look. That doesn't even make sense, but this leo is spectacular. Score: 5

Sara: I’m all about the athletes choosing their leotard colors based on their future colleges, so I wasn’t surprised to see Maggie in Oklahoma’s red and white.  While she (and Abby Paulson!) looked stunning, and it’s making me so excited to see her compete weekly in those colors, it wasn’t anything we hadn’t seen before.  I don’t know if I’ve seen this same leotard on girls at other competitions, or if there are similar ones like it, but it wasn’t unique. Score: 4


Final Score: 4.7

Madison Kocian/ WOGA


Ashlee: WOGA killed it with this one! Absolutely stunning leotard! The black mesh and white mystique go perfect together. This was by far my favorite leotard of the whole competition! Score: 5

Brittany: Now this is a pretty leo! The black mesh sleeves and the design down the center add just the right touch to make this leotard stand out. It's super sleek and elegant! Hands down one of my favorites from the meet. Score: 5

Lauren: Another one of my favorites of the night. The white mystique and black mesh looked gorgeous. And I love the rhinestones on this leotard. It's such an elegant leotard and there's nothing I don't love about it! Score: 5

Patrice: This may be my favourite WOGA leo yet! I'm not usually a fan of white leos but the white with the black mesh, and the squiggly line patter makes this my favourite leo from classics! Score: 5

Sara: I wonder if Nastia’s heart is breaking to see the WOGA girls in anything other than hot pink?  But hey, there’s no reason for Nastia to be a thing anymore and I’m glad WOGA seems to have moved on from the #hotpinknation.  I thought this leotard was beautiful on each one of the girls and I think it would be a nice choice for Nationals, as well.  Score: 4.5

Final Score: 4.9





10 comments:

  1. Great read. My fave was Aly Raisman.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great post! My favorite was Maggie's. I also liked Simone and Madison's leotards, and I'm not at all embarrassed to admit I loved Mykayla's... #PinkPower

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