"This is my fourth Olympics," explains Cindy Crawford. It should come as no surprise that appearances at the games appear especially fitting for the prolific supermodel. During her Nineties heyday, Cindy was of course celebrated for the healthy, athletic look that departed from the brittle 'waif aesthetic' of the era.
Sport, and more specifically the Olympics, has always been significant to the industry icon, "My family loved the Olympics. I grew up in Illinois and we looked forward to the summer and the winter Olympics every time. We would come home and watch it as a family. So, when I first got invited by OMEGA to go to my first Olympics, I couldn’t believe it."
Alongside her daughter Kaia Gerber the industry icon touched down in the City of Lights to celebrate the 2024 Paris Olympics, courtesy of the luxury watch label.
OMEGA is famed for adorning the wrists of household names from George Clooney to 007, but it also boasts the unique privilege of being 'official timekeepers;' of the Olympic games since 1932.
© GettyIn the past it's been the likes of Chanel who extend an invite to the twosome to visit the brand’s birthplace, enlisting the mother-daughter duo’s modelling expertise for their runway shows, be it for the ready-to-wear SS96 collection starring Cindy or the AW21 womenswear show featuring Kaia.
The pair have also been hosted in the French metropolis by global houses such as Alexander McQueen, Givenchy and Valentino, solidifying their sentimental relationship with the fashion capital. "Of course, both Kaia and I have spent a lot of time in Paris for fashion. So it’s a fun new take on the city seeing it through the Olympics. It’s still that city that we know and love," explains Cindy.
© OMEGA"I feel quite spoiled because my childhood memories of the Olympics are actually being at the physical Olympics," Kaia reveals, "I think I was seven years old when we went to Beijing. Seeing Michael Phelps win the Gold, those are moments that I was actually physically there for."
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Blood, sweat and tears, a notion both the sporting and modelling worlds are well-acquainted with.
Health and fitness lies at the heart of the industries, from gruelling gym sessions to highly publicised performances. This is a fact that Cindy and Kaia know all-too-well.
"I think any job requires discipline,” Kaia notes. “But the level of discipline that these Olympians dedicate years of their life to, and the amount of pressure that they’re under, and the way they have to perform under that pressure, I’m just in awe of it. It never ceases to amaze me.”
"For so many of these athletes, it’s pure passion," Cindy adds, continuing her daughter’s train of thought. "Even if there’s maybe not a big payday, they’re putting themselves through that, just because they love it. That to me is really awesome."
© OMEGADoes the pressure that Olympians experience compare to that of high profile models?
"No way," Kaia responds, "I don’t have a whole country rooting for me. I think representing your country is a different kind of pressure. And I think it’s so incredible that they’re able to do these extreme sort of performances when it’s being televised to the whole world."
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The pair jest about their ill-fated Olympic careers,
"I’m just not built for it," says Kaia (who stands at a willowy 5'10) humorously of her gymnastics potential, "That’s very clear to me. But I think gymnastics is just so impressive to watch."
In middle school and high school Cindy did track and field, "I like doing hurdles. I probably couldn’t get over one today. But, in my mind I could do the short ones," Cindy muses.
The Gerber family's stylish attendance at the Olympics hasn’t gone unnoticed - in fact, far from. Any fashion follower who remains chronically online will have seen the videos of the duo spectating the Opening Ceremony, with Kaia fixing her OMEGA Speedmaster 38mm to become the focal point of her Marine Serre outfit.
"It was fun sharing an umbrella with my mom - and getting soaked. Of course. Celine Dion was so moving and emotional. It was just wonderful," Kaia explains of the event. "Celine was definitely a highlight of the evening," agrees Cindy.
© OMEGAWhen the boats transporting the Olympians came down the Seine, the duo played a fun game of trying to guess which country would come next alphabetically,.
"You can’t imagine how many countries start with G," Kaia jokes. Despite their antics the poignance of the event wasn't lost.
"Just recognising that each one of those boats is carrying so many incredible athletes that have worked so hard to be here… even the athletes from the countries that aren't mine I was still rooting for," Cindy reflects.
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Like Cindy, Kaia has forged a glittering modelling career, and mirrored her mother’s role as a global brand ambassador for the aforementioned Swiss heritage horologists. "I have such fond memories of being at the Olympics with OMEGA," says the 22 year old. For her part, Cindy first joined the OMEGA family back in 1995 (she now sports the Constellation silhouette in case you were wondering.)
"I think the same values that OMEGA brings to timekeeping is what OMEGA stands for," she tells us, "It’s just excellence and precision. When people invest in a nice watch, they want that, and at the Olympics, measuring a 100th of a second can make the difference between winning and losing."
© OMEGAAs for their biggest takeaway from their Parisian Olympic experience? For Kaia the 'gold medal' goes to: "the bread and the croissants."
“They’re next level here," confirms Cindy. "And the pain au chocolat.”
