How do athletes avoid wedgies? And more Olympic questions you're afraid to ask

If you’re anything like us, watching the Summer Olympics involves a lot of staring at the screen with your jaw dropped in awe.

But it’s not just the daring backflips and the lightning-fast swim times that have us so impressed. We’re also amazed by the sprinter whose makeup doesn’t sweat off and the synchronized swimmers whose hairstyles stay perfectly in place as if they’re not high-kicking and pirouetting through a pool.

Here, we answer some of your burning beauty and style questions from the Olympics.

Q: Do swimmers really shave their entire bodies?

A: We can’t speak for everyone, but ... yes. In a sport where every fraction of a second counts, it’s important to be as smooth as possible. And most Team USA swimmers aren’t too proud to ask for help — pals and teammates Nathan Adrian and Matt Grevers said in 2016 they shaved each other’s backs.

Q: How do gymnasts avoid wedgies?

A: Believe it or not, there’s a spray for that. Gymnast Nastia Liukin, the all-around gold medalist at the 2008 Olympics, told People.com in 2016 that some gymnasts use an adhesive spray such as Tuf-Skin to hold the leotard in place since picking a wedgie during a performance is grounds for a deduction.

Custom fittings help ensure that the leotard is just the right size.

Q: Are there rules around makeup and jewelry?

A: It’s all about expression and sometimes superstition. The rules for jewelry in the Olympics vary depending on the sport — gymnasts can only wear earrings, for example, Liukin told People.com, adding that she always wore a pair of diamond studs her parents gave her for good luck.

Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher, 27, competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics while wearing a dark coral lip and later won the bronze medal with her team.

In a May 2024 Bustle interview, she shared that she typically wears mascara, under-eye concealer, a bit of brow product and a colorful lip while on the rugby field. The combination, she explained, makes her feel like she's wearing “war paint.”

“In relation to my sport, I saw that people believed athletes, especially female athletes, had to give up their femininity to be athletes,” she added. “(There was a perception) that you don’t get to be beautiful and pretty if you play these sports; you have to be manly and go out there and crush people.”

“I just didn’t like that. I didn’t think the idea that I had to give up a part of myself,” she continued. “At first, I felt self-conscious, so I wore lipstick almost as an F.U. to those standards. I can tackle people really hard, run really hard, and stiff-arm. But I can also keep my femininity with me, wear lipstick, and feel pretty out there.”

Q: How do synchronized swimmers keep their hair in place?

A: Gelatin! Team USA synchronized swimmer Mariya Koroleva told Vogue that she and her teammates use Knox gelatin as a sort of super-duper hairspray.

“It’s like unflavored Jell-O — we mix it with water, and it turns into a gooey mixture,” she said. “You comb or brush that into your hair, put it up in a bun, and put a headpiece over that, so when it dries, it gets really hard and your hair doesn’t fall out when you swim.”

As for their equally perfect makeup, waterproof products do the trick.

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This article was originally published on TODAY.com