When we peel back trends with names like "Quiet Luxury" or "Old Money," it's not hard to find sports genes in them, from tennis clothes to polo shirts, golf gear to fencing pants. In the course of the development of modern fashion for hundreds of years, these movements symbolizing elite culture have gone beyond the cycle of trend changes and advanced to an eternal classic style.

"Clothes are an expression of money culture." In his book The Theory of the Leisure Class written at the end of the 19th century, the American economist Veblen bluntly said, "To prove a person's monetary status, clothing consumption is superior to other ways, because the clothes we wear are obvious at all times and places, and all onlooker can see the signs it provides for our monetary status."

Today, however, Veblen's view may be overturned by the rise of old money - in their daily lives, the most luxurious clothes are often presented in the most modest form.

In fact, this round of low-profile but high-end, casual but delicate wearing trend summarized by "old money" can not simply be compared with conventional fashion trends, seemingly inadvertently showing a sense of relaxation and high taste, behind it is the hard power of wealth accumulated by generations of family members, in this process that takes decades or even centuries. The explicit show symbol is replaced by the recessive fabric craft and comfort, they no longer need the blessing of brand awareness, on the contrary, the clothing can provide it with intangible and thoughtful comfort, is the most rare luxury.

The suits worn in elite sports such as tennis, polo, golf, and fencing undoubtedly take into account the above picky needs, and inadvertently reveal a certain sense of power - they have the same "noble" origin with the old money, initially only serving the European court and the wealthy class, witnessing a social event in a specially built arena. When the pleasant battle is over, the clothes for these specific occasions are inadvertently integrated into life, and the "sports dress code" has evolved into the epitome of the "leisure lifestyle".

Today, tennis is a common pastime for the public, but during the reign of King Louis X of France, the ancient style of tennis was only played at court.

In 1306, when this sport was introduced from France to England, it gained the favor of King Edward III of England at that time, and ordered the construction of an indoor court in the palace, and tennis balls and rackets were made of sheepskin.

It can be said that from the beginning of the development of tennis, it has been endowed with the meaning of privilege and wealth. Centuries later, at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, tennis became one of the eight Olympic sports. Former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt was also fond of it. From the European court to the American White House, tennis has been unanimously recognized by the upper class.

This is accompanied by a strict dress code for sports, such as Wimbledon, which requires players to wear full white tracksuits or face a possible fine. As Veblen put it, "A neat coat is pleasing to the eye, if not entirely so, chiefly because it contains a hint, a hint of leisure, that the owner of the coat has no contact with any industrial operation."

One of the first to break the rules was French tennis player Suzanne Lenglen, who, with 21 Grand Slam titles, teamed up with sportswear pioneer Jean Patou in the 1920s to create eclectic, colorful striped tennis dresses.

She asked Patou's design not to limit her movements on the court, while having a feminine fashion and soft temperament. While Lenglen is rocking the court in Patou's designs, the flowing hemlines satisfy the fantasy of fashionable women off the court, even if they haven't actually played tennis.

Since then, various casual clothes inspired by tennis have also appeared in Jean Patou's designs, serving more occasions suitable for daily leisure holidays. The combination of Lenglen and Patou has successfully made tennis "break" in the territory of fashion, inspiring designers to imagine more possibilities for sportswear off-court.

Another tennis star and his personal brand are more dramatic. French tennis star Rene Lacoste in a match before, and the captain with a crocodile suitcase bet, the final win he was dubbed "crocodile" by the media and fans, which was founded in 1933 Lacoste brand and the striking crocodile logo.

This year marks the 90th anniversary of Lacoste, which for nearly a century has vividly illustrated what it means to be a "bottom-up" fashion influence, and through the efforts of designers such as Christophe Lemaire, Felipe Oliveira Baptista and Louise Trotter, Elevate the glamour of tennis to the realm of stylish luxury at the turn of the millennium.

As we all know, Gabrielle Chanel, who was active in the haute couture industry in the 1920s and 1930s, also took the initiative to move closer to the aristocratic movement in her creation. Inspired by the shooting jacket, polo shirt, cycling suit and tweed fabric in men's wear, she liberated the hard silhouette structure in the world of haute couture women's wear. Instead, there were more flexible knitted jerseys, stretch trousers and tweed suits, as well as the leather riding boots she fell in love with for equestrian sports.

When it comes to horsemanship, we have to mention Hermes, which makes a fortune. In 1918, under the leadership of Emile-Maurice, the third generation of the brand, Hermes introduced the first leather golf jacket with zipper trim, specially made for Edward VIII, Prince of Wales. In Emile-Maurice's business philosophy, the core values of the brand are "leather, sport and the tradition of refined elegance".

From the 1920s and 1930s, from the tennis court to the world of high fashion, from the French mainland, elite sports and luxury lifestyles have gone both ways. In the view of fashion curator Richard Martin, it is necessary to trace the real source of this transformation. Nor can the power of American sports style be ignored - the Great Depression that began in 1929 forced American fashion to focus on practical local style and design, reducing competition from imported goods, in which sportswear in particular played a crucial role, he regarded it as "an American invention, an American industry, an American expression of style".

At the same time Lacoste was officially founded in France, Clare Potter and Claire McCardell, two female designers from New York City, established themselves in the fashion world with sporty daywear that adapted to the shift in American middle-class lifestyles in the first half of the 20th century.

The implementation of five-day working day and eight-hour working day has greatly improved the practicality of leisure sportswear. Coupled with the promotion of American fashion media and advertisers, sportswear has been given the concept of pursuing a healthy life and active life, and has a tendency to replace vacation wear (clothing specially used for luxury trips such as cruise ships and sailing boats). Even further sublimated into the epitome of modernity and American ideals.

However, at that time, American-made, whether in fabric or technology, still could not be compared with the profound accumulation of French fashion, and the arrogant fashion industry only described the American sports style as "something that cannot be seen in Paris."

The real turning point came after World War II, when the restrictions of fabric rationing were lifted, allowing American designers to move beyond denim, cotton and knitted fabrics and collaborate with high-quality foreign fabrics to add quality to sportswear's comfort.

American fashion designer Rudolf Gernreich may not be well known today, but his name reflects the outward looking trend of the American clothing industry in the 1950s and 1960s. As a freelance designer, he also moonlighting as a fabric salesman, which led him to create a line of easy-to-wear knitted tracksuits using double-sided knitting techniques he developed in Italy.

As a major place for fabric research and development and trading, Italy has undoubtedly played a crucial role in improving the quality of American sportswear.

Back to the brands that now symbolize the dressing preferences of the old money families, one of them, Loro Piana, made its name after World War II as a supplier of wool and cashmere fabrics.

Of course, the unique advantages of raw materials and the tradition of clothing craft also provided a fertile ground for the development of Italian designers, including the Krizia founder Mariuccia Mandelli and Ottavio Missoni. John Fairchild once called them "the first people to make fine sportswear."

Compared with the American style, the biggest difference of Italian sportswear is the word "exquisite", and among them, like Emilio Pucci, Ottavio Missoni and others, before becoming designers, also had the experience of athletes.

Missoni's fashion career began when she and track teammate Giorgio Oberweger produced woolen tracksuits in the northeastern Italian city of Trieste, and their designs appeared on the world stage as the official uniform of the Italian Olympic team.

Mr. Cucinelli, the founder of Brunello Cucinelli, an Italian cashmere brand, began his career as a model.

"When I was 24, I was hired as a model for a sportswear company near my home that was one of the world's leading players in ski and tennis wear." It was in the process of working that Cucinelli conceived the idea of starting his own business, and with colorful cashmere jumpers as the main brand, "I adhere to the philosophy: the exquisite craftsmanship of Italian clothing, although the price is high, but value for money, focusing on the 'top luxury' market segment."

It can be said that the experience of working in a sportswear company has also subtly influenced the brand style established by Cucinelli to some extent. In the same period of the American market, a POLO shirt printed with a polo swing pattern, for the American sports wind to win the right to the world's high-end fashion.

For a long time, polo and golf, equestrian, racing and so on and called the aristocratic sport, and further study, you will find that polo is one of the most "money", which not only refers to the athletes' equipment, even the audience's dress is very particular.

As early as the Victorian era, polo players needed to wear white flannel trousers, white polo shirts and a white shirt with a neat neckline on the field, and for the carefully dressed spectators, competition organizers also set up prizes for them to promote the "elite" of the sport.