NOTICE MORE people watching the women’s volleyball games? Blame it on the newest member of the team. It has gotten people talking, people snickering, and fortunately for the Lady Spikers, it is increasing their fan base.

This streamlined tight fitting suit—improving aerodynamics while increasing speed—has even stirred controversy on the international stage.

When the Australian Women’s Basketball team wore it during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, it was the topic of discussion for avid bloggers and sports enthusiasts. When the Cameroon football team wore it during the African Cup of Nations, they were controversially fined US$154,000 for breaking the UEFA uniform protocol and was even ducked six qualifying points from their World Cup group campaign.

So, it is no surprise that when the Ateneo Women’s Volleyball team joined the bandwagon, people got talking.

Opting for a drastic change from the traditional spandex shorts and jersey top, this UAAP season the Lady Spikers are sporting a one-piece, skin-tight, aerodynamic uniform. But never mind how ridiculous people may think it looks. It’s function over aesthetics.

Function

Second year Lady Spiker Angelina Gervacio recalls her early experiences wearing the uniform, stating that the uniform was only a disadvantage during the first game. “We were still a bit conscious since all of us weren’t used to wearing it, and we were dealing with a huge crowd,” she says.

But aside from the initial discomforts of facing an army of Ateneo fans witnessing the one piece-suit for the first time, the uniform’s locomotive benefits outweigh the momentarily periods of embarrassment.

Bea Pascual, fourth year veteran of the Lady Spikers says, “Overall the uniform has had a good effect naman on the team.”

“Of course at first we were really conscious about it, because it’s tight, but once we got used to it, I think compared to the other jerseys na may sleeves pa, hindi na kami na-hahassle na itaas-taas kasi it’s tight na (we didn’t feel the hassle to keep fixing because it’s already skin tight),” she adds.

Gervacio says, “[The uniform] really allows us to move lightly and feel comfortable at the same time.”

While it may have not been done on purpose, the new look or re-packaging of the women’s volleyball team has also become somewhat of an advertising success.

“It’s a crowd drawer. More fans are rooting for us,” Pascual says of the new fan base the uniform has tapped.

Negative image?

However, due to its visually appealing design, parents and alumni alike were questioning the negative image the uniform would convey.

But Pascual rejects these and admits that while the uniforms may be form-fitting, its functions are far more important.

“Yes, at first parents were saying that guys would just peeve on us with these uniforms,” Pascual says, “but with the benefits and high quality material of this new sports technology, parents have slowly come around to realize that the uniforms are tight and body-fitting for a reason.”

Design

So how is it that such a drastic uniform change came about? Emmanuel Fernandez, Assistant to the Director of the Ateneo University Athletics Office says, “The reason behind the change is simple. It looks nice.”

Fernandez says he has been wanting to change the women’s volleyball uniform to a one-piece suit for a while now, but he has found the necessary technology to do so only recently.

Fernandez has been in-charge of Ateneo uniforms for three years now. Every year he consults with seven-year sponsor Adidas for their latest designs, and selects the one that best meets the color requirements, looks good on camera, and is made from the best suited material for each sport.

Ateneo uniforms are designed more carefully than you think. Fernandez uses the example of last year’s men’s basketball uniform. When Adidas put a black strip on the side of the jerseys, he says, “We had to tell them [that] we can’t use black, because it is not an Ateneo color.”

Fernandez also adds that the women’s basketball uniforms are not the traditional basketball uniforms. “The shorts are a bit tighter [and] the shirts are contoured.”

Despite the hallway snicker, the one-piece suit has become a crowd pleaser. Next year, Fernandez is planning to use the one-piece uniform for the women’s basketball team.