Julio 24, 2021-

El Salvador paraded in the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic Games with great elegance, but without losing its identity. On the contrary, the uniform carries a distinctive element of our country such as coffee

“The idea was to include a distinctive element of El Salvador in our outfit. The suit had to be representative of our identity. So we associate the Salvadoran with coffee, a product with which we want to identify ourselves in the same way that New Zealand does with a fern leaf, England with the rose and Canada with the maple leaf ”, commented Colonel Francisco Ramos, chief of Mission when presenting it in society.

As in London 2012, the Olympic Committee decided to take this to a competition. For this reason, together with Fashion Life, we invited several of the most talented national fashion designers to compete with each other with different proposals. “I confess that as part of the jury I was surprised by the quality of the creations of these young artists, and actually reaching an agreement with the rest of the members of the jury was a very arduous task, to the point that it took us long hours of debate. "Ramos acknowledged.

The jury was made up of several members of the executive committee of Team ESA, as well as specialists such as René Barrera (Fashion Life), communicators Aída Farrar and Dianna Escobar and Kalena de Velado, a corporate image consultant. Among the proposals presented was that of Zótico, a creation of the designer Mario Rodríguez.

Another challenge posed to the designers, and which was stated in the contest rules, was to devise a suit that would combine with a fixed element: the blue blazer that was used in the ceremonies of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games and the Pan American Games. Lima 2019.

“When we saw the contest we realized that it was not only what we were going to propose but to work with the athletes, so that they felt comfortable, making sure to listen to the needs they had for this uniform. It was important that each person who wears the uniform feels the connection with the country and feels proud of it, "said Mario Rodríguez.

Inspired, Zotic also associated coffee with the Olympics through his flower. “When a coffee plant is four years old, it blooms for the first time. Four years, the same time that passes between one Olympian and another. Therefore, we felt that this beautiful flower was the perfect common thread to celebrate the famous Salvadoran coffee in the outfits that our athletes will wear in Tokyo, ”he explained.
"Coffee, the flower of the coffee plant, represents the history and tradition of coffee in El Salvador, since it is a symbol of perseverance, the fruit of hard work and life expectancy for the future of the country," he added.
His proposal consisted of a white shirt for both sexes, with blue-black edges and buttons to create contrasts with the jacket. The design of the trousers is classic, with the detail of the coffee beans. The ladies' skirt is crossed, with tie at the waist with greater comfort and details of buttons lined in red on the white edges.

“The uniform sums up the art that the worker must have when working with the coffee plant. The fruit, for its part, represents the product of his work, ”added Eduardo Palomo, president of the Olympic Committee of El Salvador, who is also a coffee grower.

The jackets, on the other hand, are the brainchild of Rowing Blazers, a prestigious New York house specializing in sports jackets. The footwear is courtesy of Adoc, our sponsor, who provided each athlete with the traditional “Donkeys”, which are also an important part of our identity because it is the indestructible shoe that the workers wear.