Why Do Some Male Gymnasts Wear Pants — and Can the Female Gymnasts Wear Them Too?

When it comes to gymnastics, the details matter. The judges are looking at everything — down to the smallest details — and it's important that nothing gets in the way of letting the judges clearly see all the lines of the athletes' bodies as they leap, jump, and perform other feats that we mere mortals can only dream of doing.

Naturally, the athletes' uniforms play a role in this. Not only are proper uniforms important for safety issues (you don't want to get your outfit snagged on something while attempting a dangerous maneuver), but they are also meant to let the judges score properly.

So why do we sometimes see male gymnasts wear pants, while the women always seem to be in just leotards?

It apparently all comes down to choice. There don't appear to be any rules that Olympic gymnasts cannot wear full-length leotards.

The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique 2013-2016 Code of Points mentions that all athletes can wear leg coverings of the same color as their leotard, either worn on top or under their leotard. The leotards can also include sleeves if they so choose.

Meanwhile, the NCAA Gymnastics Rules Modification Document (updated in February 2024) similarly mentions that athletes can wear undergarments the same color as their leotard or skin color.

In fact, Germany's women's gymnastics team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics opted to wear both long sleeves and long pants.

As German gymnast Sarah Voss told CNN at the time: "The coaches were also very much into it. They said they want us to feel the most confident and comfortable in any case. It just makes you feel better and more comfortable." The German Gymnastics Federation said it was a move against "sexualization in gymnastics."

And if you were to ask the average viewer, they'd probably agree about sexism in the sport. In a Reddit thread that questioned why male gymnasts wear pants while women don't, one person answered succinctly: "To get men to watch." Someone replied directly to this with: "Correct."

Former gymnast Natalie Wojcik posted to TikTok in 2023 about the vile online comments she endured about how her body looked in her uniform, which included remarks like, "When did gymnasts start showing half their a--es?" Natalie captioned her video: "Being a woman in sports is hard sometimes."

Fans rallied around her in the comments section, with one person saying: "If you feel comfortable in it that’s all that matters."