Leotard Rankings: Week 5

Love the crystal cascade on the bodice paired with the ombre color fade. I do think the sleeve mesh was slightly too transparent; it would have been more effective if it actually looked black on the gymnasts rather than being able to see their skin tone so clearly through it. The thicker mesh on the chest area should have gone all the way down the arm. Maryland logo is also itty bitty, so a tenth or two comes off for that.

This one looked better on paper than in reality for me, unfortunately. I do like the glittery rain on the front, and the kinda ombre look on the sleeves. I’m a bit bothered by the slightly thicker black mesh on the upper torso rather than the sleeves and wish it had been the same. That said, it still looks nice and much better than many of the Maryland leos, and doesn’t prominently feature bright, mustard yellow. I actually like that the yellow is incorporated into the UA logo, and on the small “M” on the hip bone.

This is another good one, but I don’t like it as much as some other ombre leos. It’s almost faux-mbre? Because the design is printed on the fabric rather than using multiple fabrics or rhinestones to create it. I do like how the Under Armor logo is yellow to bring in the school spirit and stop it from being just a red and black leo. I also love the sleeves, neckline and Maryland logo on the hip, although I wish for the love of god the Big 10 teams would stop putting BIG on the gymnasts’ leotards.

So I normally like the lace leos. But the fact that it’s a turtleneck to open back is just a little weird to me? I don’t know, something about it just throws me off. The use of sparkle is really nice, and I like that the “Arkansas” is a little smaller and on the back this week.

This is one of my favorite Arkansas leos. I loooove the back cutout and the small Arkansas. The front is elegant and I really like the sweetheart neckline. Overall, I’m a big fan. Simple, yet stylish.

You know how I feel about lace, but this is one of the better ones. I don’t like it as much as SUU’s lace leo, but it’s up there. I like the back cutout—how it’s not the same as every other back cutout. I also enjoy the sweetheart neckline and the “Arkansas” on the back, but I don’t like how high the lace goes in the front. That would be annoying to compete in I feel like.

So I don’t mind the flames because they’re flames. I mind them because they don’t make sense with Stanford. Especially since like, their mascot is the Cardinal and their logo is a tree? That just seems counterintuitive to me, but maybe I’m overthinking it. Anyway, I do like the sparkly material on the sleeves and the V-neck is a nice silhouette on most of the girls.

This is indeed one of the nice Stanford leos. I like the shade and colors, but am not too big on the flames coming out of the chest area. I do like the V-neck and the sparkles, but I can’t get past the flames.

This is one of the better Stanford leos. I like the shimmery arm color but it almost matches too much with the body. I wish it was just slightly more different so the two colors contrasted more. But I do love the sheen it gives off. Aside from that, I like the flamey design on the V-cut in the front and the amount of sparkle along the V as well—it makes the gymnasts really shine when they move.

This is a statement leo, and I actually really like it. Only a school with such a starkly recognizable logo would be able to pull this off, and I think MSU’s Spartan fits that bill perfectly. I would’ve loved to see some more sparkle on the black fabric in the bodice (or maybe even make it an inherently-sparkly fabric?), and I actually would’ve made the Spartan bigger, to make it more visible from both the front and the back, rather than just the side. I wish the ombre were a little more full-bodied on the Spartan too, the fade to white looks almost blue in the photo.

This is an interesting design, but I’m not sure I really dig it. I do like that they went for the ombre trend on the Spartan logo, but other than that, it’s just such a simple leo. I understand we can’t make it too busy because of the giant Spartan head but still… Or maybe don’t put the head on the side, so at least there is something on the front or back? Or maybe add some more rhinestones? It does need a little something more. I just can’t get behind this leo.

This leo is oozing with school spirit—you can’t deny that. I like the incorporation of the ombre inside the Spartan head. It’s not the typical use of ombre but still sticks with the current trends. I also like the rhinestone cuffs around the wrists but the rest is sort of blah. Obviously you don’t want it to get too busy or it would detract from the giant head on the side, but it needs some more oomph.

I love the minimalism of this design. I could’ve used a little more bling on the bodice itself and that particular shade of blue may not be flattering to every skin tone, but I like that they took such a bold color and made a statement. I have no idea what the back looks like, but apparently there’s some school spirit there, so I threw in some tenths for that which I cannot see.

I love this shade of blue unlike Elizabeth, and I like the subtle touches of red here and there. Where my main issue here is how long the mesh goes. I feel like the cut is just kind of weird, and maybe the sweetheart neckline should have been a tad bit higher? It just feels like a lot of mesh on the upper part of the bodice. The back was a bit too simple for me, and I wish it included some red in there too.

I like this one… There’s just something about it… It reminds me a lot of the Russian leo from the Olympics in Rio. It’s almost as if the blue color is too bright and bold? It’s too in your face. Maybe if it wasn’t so much primary colors together, it would be better? I did like the font of the “Arizona” on the back and the mesh on the sides.

This is a solid leo. A bit basic perhaps, but solid. The touch of the gold ribbon makes it a little more complex, though I would’ve liked to see a pattern in it rather than just a random design. I also really like the “Broncos” written on the hip! I like when teams include their mascot and not just their school name. I could’ve used more sparkle, and maybe just a little more oomph somewhere. That’s what I’m missing—the oomph factor.

This one is a bit too simple for me. It is a nice leo and there is nothing specifically that bugs me about it, but I wish there was just… More to it? More sparkles, more design, more colors? I’m not sure… It’s alright. I don’t hate it, but I don’t *love* it either.

I like this one. It’s classy. You can’t really go wrong with a black body and white sleeves. Adding the gold ribbons on the arms and chest kept it from being boring and also added in that school spirit we look for—not to mention the subtly “Broncos” on the hip. I could have used maybe a touch more sparkle throughout, but overall it was a solid leo!