Glitter and glamour are as much a part of Figure Skating as jumps and spins; after all, it’s the only Olympic sport where such elaborate and diverse costumes can be seen. 

The costume is an important part of each performance and designers work hard to make a costume not just beautiful, but suited to the skater and the program as well as comfortable so that it does not get into the way when athletes perform quads or acrobatic lifts.

Some skaters are very much involved in the costume design. Three-time ISU World Ice Dance Champion Madison Chock (USA) likes to design costumes for her and her partner Evan Bates but also for others. 

Madison Chock (USA) designs the costumes for her and partner Evan Bates among other skaters © ISU

“The costumes are a huge piece of the overall packaging of a program,” Chock said.

“They really help set the tone and the mood that you want for your performance. 

“Designing the costumes is probably one of my favorite parts of the entire season. I can just be as creative as possible, I can bounce ideas off Evan and it's really fun for me.”

The Ice Dancers are known for their interesting and beautiful costumes. Chock & Bates won the ISU Skating Award for the best costume in 2020 and 2023. They were nominated again in 2024, and in 2025 Olivia Smart’s (ESP) costume that Chock designed received the award.

Chock and Bates' 'Astronaut and Alien' costumes won the ISU Skating Award for best costumes in 2023 © ISU

“Maddie will usually make multiple versions of her dress and my costume and then we'll pick our favorites and we usually have the same favorites,” Bates said.

“I think it's nice to have a lot of input into what you're wearing on the ice and ultimately what you're doing and saying to the audience on the ice because the most unique thing about our sport is the artistic side of it. We have the opportunity to express the art and I think the costumes play such a big part of that.” 

The science of skirtography 

For this season’s Flamenco-themed Free Dance especially, Chock came up with several interesting versions of the costumes, especially her long skirt which plays its own role in the program. 

“I have a practice skirt that I wear in training at home, so I was able to get used to all the movements and implement the choreography seamlessly, so when we get to competition it's just like breathing and using the skirt,” Chock explained.

Chock's long red skirt plays a significant role in the Flamenco-themed Free Dance the pair performed in Milan © Getty Images

“That was really fun, too, to kind of incorporate that kind of prop, if you will. It's part of my outfit, but it feels like another addition to dance.

“You have hairography, you have skirtography now, and it's really fun to have this side of movement and use it to do a lot of storytelling."

Chock draws inspiration for her costume design from different sources.

“I guess the main inspiration that I would draw from would be our characters and what we want to say, who our characters are, and that comes out in the color of the costume, the shape of the silhouettes.”

Chock designed Olivia Smart's Dune-themed costume which she wore to partner Tim Dieck at the Milan Games © Getty Images

Chock collaborates with Canadian designer Mathieu Caron to create their costumes. He is the mastermind behind many beautiful costumes every season.

“Firstly, the inspiration comes from the program, from the music, but mostly from the skaters,” Caron said.

High fashion hits the ice

Costumes are where Figure Skating meets fashion – and this is especially true for Canada’s 2024 ISU World Pair Skating Champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps. 

Deanna Stellato-Dudek (CAN) will wear dresses designed by Oscar de la Renta for the Olympic Pair Skating

Stellato-Dudek collaborated with the haute couture brand Oscar de la Renta which designed a luxurious golden shimmering dress for her for the Short Program and an equally stunning, shiny red dress for the Free Skating. Stellato-Dudek debuted these costumes at Canadian Nationals in January. 

The haute-couture dresses were hand-made over the course of nine months

“This is amazing,” she said at Nationals.

“So that took them four months just to come up with the idea, and then the production was like another five. 

"Luckily, when they came, I was able to skate in it. And it worked because I was worried about the functionality.”

Part of the story

Ice Dancer Paul Poirier underlined the meaning costumes hold for him. 

“I think more than anything, they're part of the story and they allow us to inhabit the characters that we want to be when we're performing,” he pointed out. 

"To me a costume feels like putting on the character in a really special way and it really puts all of yourself and your mind and your feelings into that place that you want to be when you're performing.”

Canadians Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier's costumes for their 'Vincent' Free Dance were inspired Van Gogh's Starry Night © Getty Images

According to designer Caron, the ideal costume fits perfectly, makes the athlete feel good, suits the program and enhances the performance

“In general, I consider that my work should service the performance of the athletes,” he said.

“The costume always should stress and define the intention of the choreographer, and reveal and underline the strengths of the athletes.”