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Dior Champions Somali Boxer Ramla Ali and 7 Other Athletes for its Sportswear Line

Ramla Ali in Dior Vibe. Photo: Courtesy of Dior

Creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri offered her unique take on sportswear to the world when she presented the Dior Vibe line as part of the fashion house’s Cruise 2022 collection. Including movement-friendly pieces such as leggings, jackets, and futuristic running shoes, the line is inspired by the freedom of sports, and so, who better than the world’s rising athletes to model it?

Sun Yiwen. Photo: Courtesy of Dior

In a series of photos captured by Dan Beleiu, Wang Ziqian, Min Hyunwoo, and Harry Eelman, the French house highlights eight sports stars including Somali boxer Ramla Ali. As an amateur boxer, she became the first Muslim to win an English title before deciding to represent Somalia in 2017. She would go on to make history in 2021 as the first Somali woman to compete in the Olympics.

Nadia Nadim. Photo: Courtesy of Dior

The series of images also feature Afghan-Danish soccer player Nadia Nadim, Greek athlete Athina Koini, Italian prima ballerina and director of Rome Opera House Ballet Eleonora Abbagnato, Chinese national team fencer Sun Yiwen and surfer Darsea Liu, Korean figure skater and Olympic champion Yuna Kim, and American skateboarder Briana King. Each athlete is photographed in their chosen fields, sporting key pieces from the line that feature the Dior Étoile, Dior Athlet, and Dior Oblique motifs, as well as the Dior Vibe bags.

Eleonora Abbagnato. Photo: Dan Beleiu/ Courtesy of Dior

Unveiled at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, the Dior Cruise 2022 collection is an ode to sports, but more importantly, women’s liberation brought about by them. “Sport has played a great role in the emancipation of women,” the designer shared after the show. “I think we need to remember that women have had to fight to play their favorite sports… [and] that fight still goes on today.”

Birana King. Photo: Courtesy of Dior

In an unexpected yet natural next step, the fashion house also collaborated with Technogym on a line of limited edition home fitness products: a treadmill, a wellness ball, and a multifunction bench, all emblazoned with the unmistakable Christian Dior logo.

Athina Koini. Photo: Courtesy of Dior

Read Next: From Saudi Arabia, This Artist is the First Arab to Craft a Dior Lady Bag

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