Swimsuit worn by Simone Manuel during the 2016 Rio Olympic Games

National Museum of American History

Object Details

Manuel, Simone
Description (Brief)
Swimsuit worn by Simone Manuel during the 2016 Rio Olympic Games is a one piece women's jammer consisting of a one piece swimsuit with fabric to the knee. Manuel became the first African American woman in history to win an individual Olympic Gold medal in swimming during the Rio Games.
The 2016 Summer Olympics, also known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad were held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with 207 countries and 11,238 athletes participating. These were the first Olympic Games held entirely in the host country’s winter season and the first to be held in South America. These Games were designed with sustainability in mind and many of the features of the Games were made from recyclable materials. The Refugee Olympic Team entered 10 athletes for competition made up of refugees from the European Migrant crisis. The Zika virus was a factor in competition as many athletes decided to forgo the Games for fear of catching the virus spread through mosquitos. Michael Phelps came out of retirement to compete in the Games and added more medals to his historic count. Katie Ledecky won four gold medals and teammate Simone Manual won two gold and two silver medals becoming the first African American to win an individual swimming gold medal. Simone Biles dominated gymnastics, winning four gold and the women’s team won the all-around competition. The United States won the medal count with 121.
Location
Currently not on view
2016
ID Number
2016.0329.01
accession number
2016.0329
catalog number
2016.0329.01
Object Name
swimsuit
swimsuit, summer olympics
Physical Description
fabric, nylon (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 30 in x 11 1/2 in; 76.2 cm x 29.21 cm
See more items in
Culture and the Arts: Sport and Leisure
Sports & Leisure
National Museum of American History
name of sport
Swimming
level of sport
Amateur
Olympics
web subject
African American
Women
Record ID
nmah_1823347
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b3-1751-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
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