FEATURE: Patriotism in vogue for Olympics athletes and spectators By Afra Gallati, dpa Eds: epa photo

London (dpa) - Skin-tight body suits, wrestler masks and Greek togas are all the rage among spectators at the London Olympics aiming to offer visual backing to their national teams alongside the more usual vocal support.

The outfits and accessories range from the staid to the truly bizarre, although patriotism is a constant theme: clothes printed with the colours of national flags are a common sight in the British capital.

Among the female athletes, nail varnish in national colours is in high demand. The Olympic Rings are another common theme.

The morphsuits marketed by a Scottish company that were an eye-opener at the recent European football championships have also been seen. In the water sports arena two fans wore them in the design of the stars and stripes.

These spandex costumes allow the wearer not only to breathe and see, but even to drink through them.

A group of British supporters turned up at the beach volleyball in classical togas with laurel wreaths as headdress. And at the Mexico-South Korea football match, one fan arrived wearing a wrestler‘s mask over his face.

A Brazilian fan wearing a green-and-yellow hat with a miniature Jesus statue on top was a hit with the press photographers, as were Americans who supported their football team as Wonderwoman, Elvis and Scooby Doo.

The red, white and blue of the Union Jack were everywhere to be seen as Britons rediscover a sense of patriotism following recent events like the marriage of Prince William and the queen‘s diamond jubilee.

Cheeks, spectacles, wigs, hats and T-shirts all provided a surface to adorn with the British flag. German fans wore black, red and gold floral wreathes on their heads or around their necks.

A spokeswoman for the nail studio in the Olympic village proudly announced they had painted the nails of more than 500 female athletes in patriotic designs, with swimmers having their toenails as well as their fingernails done.

Gold, silver and bronze in the nailpainting event went in order to Britain, the United States and Canada, with other European countries following behind, the spokeswoman said.

Another hit among the female athletes has been headdress in the form of an animal. Turkmen swimmer Jennet Saryyeva drew admiring glances with her shark bathing cap, while her Chinese counterpart Fu Yuanhui appeared for her race with a red dragon cap replete with pom-poms. dpa aug rpm hl