The most eye-catching uniforms at the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony

From Bhutan's boots to bare-chested national dress, Friday's event featured not only top designer labels but also lots of colour and tradition

Members of Team Lesotho during the Olympics opening ceremony.

The UAE delegation at the opening ceremony with Emirati swimmer Yousuf Al Matrooshi as flag bearer.

A team member of Virgin Islands walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Patrick Hausding and Laura Ludwig, of Germany, lead their contingent during the athletes parade at the opening ceremony.

A team member of Gambia walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

A team member of Cameroon walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics on Friday.

A team member of Bhutan walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

A team member of Sudan walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics on Friday.

A team member of Iran walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

A team member of Colombia walks during the opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Flag bearers Angelika Ouedraogo and Hugues Fabrice Zango of Team Burkina Faso walk together with the team during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Nadia Eke and Sulemanu Tetteh of Team Ghana walk out during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Tilali Scanlan and Tanumafili Malietoa Jungblut of Team American Samoa walk out during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

A member of Team Kuwait attends the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium.

Flag bearer Seydou Fofana of Team Mali walks with the team during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium.

Members of Team Bolivia walk together during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium.

Flag bearers Marie Hanitra Roilya Ranaivosoa and Louis Richarno Colin of Team Mauritius lead their team during the Parade of Nations at the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Regine Kate Tugade and Joshter Andrew of Team Guam walk with their team during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Silina Pha Aphay and Santisouk Inthavong of Team Laos walk out during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

A member of Team South Sudan walks out during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Members of Team USA attend the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium.

Flag bearer Amantle Montsho of Team Botswana walks with her team during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Keyla Paola Avila Ramirez and Julio Horrego of Team Honduras lead their team.

Flag bearers Liu Ying Goh and Zii Jia Lee of Team Malaysia during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Kirsten Andrea Fisher-Marsters and Wesley Tikiariki Roberts of Team Cook Islands.

Flag bearers Colleen Furgeson and Phillip Kinono of Team Marshall Islands walk with their team.

A member of Team Poland looks on during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Nafissath Radji and Privel Hinkati of Team Benin during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearer Joseph Emilienne Essombe Tiako of Team Cameroon carries the flag.

Flag bearers Ornella Havyarimana and Belly-Cresus Ganira of Team Burundi lead their team out during the Opening Ceremony.

Flag bearers Aida Gabriella Mohamed and Laszlo Cseh of Team Hungary lead their team out during the Opening Ceremony.

Flag bearers Gulbadam Babamuratova and Merdan Atayev of Team Turkmenistan lead their team.

Members of Team Denmark.

Flag bearers Tahani Alqahtani and Husein Alireza of Team Saudi Arabia lead the team out during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Kirsten Andrea Fisher-Marsters and Wesley Tikiariki Roberts of Team Cook Islands.

Flag bearer Nurul Akmal of Team Indonesia leads his team out.

Flag bearers Kinaua Biribo and Ruben Katoatau of Team Kiribati.

Flag bearers Joseph Emilienne Essombe Tiako of Team Cameroon carries the flag during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Flag bearers Loa Dika Toua and Morea Baru of Team Papua New Guinea lead their team out.

Flag bearer Nurul Akmal of Team Indonesia leads his team out during the Opening Ceremony.

Members of Team Swaziland walk out with their team.

Flag Bearers of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) team Sofya Velikaya and Maxim Mikhaylov lead a delegation.

Flag Bearers of People's Republic of China Ting Zhu and Shuai Zhao lead a delegation during the Opening Ceremony.

Flag bearer Natalia Santos of Team Angola leads their team out.

The Kenyan delegation parades during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Switzerland delegation parades during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Paraguay delegation parades during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Jordan delegation parades during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo.

Flag bearers of Team Mongolia Khulan Onolbaatar and Duurenbayar Ulziibayarenjoy lead their delegation.

Flag bearers Hamish Bond of New Zealand and Sarah Hirini of New Zealand lead their contingent.

Athletes of Team Japan wave during the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Members of Team USA at Olympic Stadium.

Athletes of Team Hong Kong.

Flag bearers Tomas Satoransky and Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic lead their contingent.

Flag bearer Rillio Rii of Vanuatu leads his contingent during the athletes parade at the opening ceremony.

Flag bearers Chungneijang Mery Kom Hmangte and Manpreet Singh of Team India during the Opening Ceremony.

Flag bearers Ebony Morrison and Joseph Fahnbulleh of Team Liberia during the Opening Ceremony.

Athletes from Team Great Britain.

Italy's delegation parade during the opening ceremony.

Flag bearers Malia Paseka and Pita Taufatofua of Team Tonga lead their team out during the Opening Ceremony.

Flag bearers Miranda Ayim and Nathan Hirayama of Team Canada lead their team out.

The Olympic stadiums may be devoid of spectators, but the world's top athletes made sure they turned out in their best at Friday's opening ceremony.

As is now tradition, top global labels including Ralph Lauren (Team USA), Ben Sherman (Team GB), Giorgio Armani (Team Italy) and Les Benjamins (Team Turkey) have designed outfits for their country's Olympic teams. While some, such as American designer Telfar Clemens, whose parents are from Liberia, created outfits for the five-member team representing the West African country.

Scroll through the gallery above for all the eye-catching uniforms at the Tokyo Games opening ceremony.

Members of Team USA wear Ralph Lauren during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the National Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, on Friday, July 23, 2021. Bloomberg

There were also eye-catching details, such as boots from Bhutan striped with a multicoloured gumdrop design, and lime green embroidery on shirts from Cameroon. Some athletes, such as Tonga flag-bearer Pita Taufatofua and Riilio Rii from the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, decided to turn up bare-chested.

Host country Japan harked back to their uniforms from the opening ceremony of the last Olympics to be held in Tokyo, in 1964. Back then, jackets were red and trousers white, the colours are switched this year.

Team Australia also honoured its Olympic history, with the sand-coloured blazer worn by athletes lined with the names of the country’s 320 Olympic gold medallists.

Meanwhile, some paid tributes to their country's traditions. Mexico, which held a national vote online to choose the opening ceremony looks, had their team lapels designed in traditional Zapotec embroidery. The embroidery was done by Oaxacan artisans, making each lapel among the 150 blazers a different custom design.

There is still more eye-catching fashion to come. Team Canada's "Canadian tuxedo" denim designs – inspired by Japanese street-style graffiti – which are to be worn at the closing ceremony, were the subject of much ridicule when they were revealed last year.

Lucia Kinghorn, vice president of design at Hudson’s Bay, which helped create Canada’s uniforms and other Olympic gear, was aware of the scorn.

“For as many naysayers, we have even more fans,” she told the Associated Press. “We’re proud of the thoughtful design behind Team Canada’s clothing and happy that so many people are talking about it.”