The winning Olympic race was ridden by Ester Ledecká in sportswear from Pardubice. For many years she cooperates with Ivo Tichý from bohdaneč spa, who designs and tailors everything for her. On Tuesday, Ledecká dominated the parallel giant slalom on snowboard for the second time at the Beijing Games and won her third Olympic gold medal. On Friday, she will defend her title in the super-giant slalom on skis.
The businessman has been cooperating with a successful sportswoman for about eight years, Tichý does not keep accurate statistics. Every year, Ledecky makes about twenty jumpsuits or sets. Every race needs something different. For example, before leaving for the Olympics at one o’clock at night, Tichý made final adjustments, then took them to the plane.
“To keep it up to date, to show on clothes every change of body. It can only be a feeling, we also have to respond to a feeling, the head is very important, how you believe in yourself. Again we made overalls for Ester for alpine disciplines and for snowboard. I designed it for snowboarding this season and for the Olympic Games and made a completely new revolutionary cut, ” said Tichý, whose company Don quiet and the eponymous brand dresses the Czech national team.
On a snowboard there is a jacket and trousers separately. Quiet did the seams differently, so as not to impede aerodynamics, and since this is not a jumpsuit, the clothes, according to the general rules, should not be completely encircled on the body. The opposite is speed overalls, which are like a second skin. “We followed the rules, but we took risks. We did not go into anything that is not allowed on a snowboard, such as drawstrings, straps that would reduce the volume of the body,” said Tichý.
According to Tichy, his proposal is unique, he expects other athletes to take it over. He worked on it with colleagues for a year. “The first prototype was made, then she tried it on the World Cup, which she won by a huge margin. It was a combination of new cut and material. The fabrics I have woven in Switzerland, for each speed, for each discipline, a different material is developed,” said Tichý.
From the fabric made, his company sews prototypes, which the figurants test, among other things, in a wind tunnel that simulates real conditions on the slope. “It’s more complicated on skis, Ester uses a man’s material. He has different material for each discipline, ” Tichý said.
Also important is how the clothes look. To please the sportswoman and feel comfortable in it. The design is proposed by her brother Jonah, and according to his words, she feels like a superhero in it. “My brother will make the design of the figurine, we will repaint it into cuts, the theme will be made into a jumpsuit. We still have to place partner logos there, so that they become part of the design, so that it looks good with them,” Tichý described.
Tichý originally started his business with ski clothing for recreational purposes, mainly he wanted to sew for himself ski boots, there were no suitable ones for him at that time. In the end, he founded a business on this and got into professional sports. He dresses skiers from the Virgin Islands, Lebanon, Chile, Czech national team, Paralympics or Deaflympic team.
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