Many Olympians refer to the “Kit Day” as one of the happiest days of their lives. Before flying out to the Olympic city, we receive many sweaters and jackets, lots of shirts, socks, towels, and even suitcases in our country’s colors.
At the Olympic Village, it then becomes easier to identify where everyone is from as everyone’s dressed in flag colors with the name of their country in big letters on their chest or back. Receiving all the gear for free is a delight as over the years, the costs of winter sports clothing, along with other expenses like coaching, traveling, and more can add up!
Kit Day is also where we meet many of our country’s athletes from different sports for the first time. As I was the only freestyle skier for Hungary and mostly trained in Utah, before that day, I had not yet met the other Olympic team athletes from Hungary, including the alpine skiers, cross-country skiers, speed skaters, and figure skaters.