How women's Olympic leotards have evolved over the last 80 years

AP/Lionel Cironneau; Getty Images/Ezra Shaw

US gymnasts Mary Lou Retton in 1984 and Simone Bi les in 2016.

At the Rio Games, the only thing shining brighter than Team USA's gymnasts are their sparkly leotards. Crystal-drenched leos (as they're known in gymnastics shorthand) are a fixture of the sport. 

Why? It's all about confidence. 

"It's part of the 'look good, feel good, do good' aspect," former Olympic gymnast Samantha Peszek told the New York Times. "It may sound trivial, but what you wear really matters."

"I have never met a gymnast who doesn't love rhinestones," 2012 Fierce Five gymnast Jordyn Wieber added.

But when women's gymnastics was first introduced to the Summer Olympics at the 1936 Berlin Games, gymnasts' looks were far less bedazzled than they are today. The Times recently interviewed both athletes and leotard designers to uncover the history of the garment. Here's a look at its dazzling evolution.