Dior SS25: A Sporty Odyssey

Before the lights dim, before the music blares, before the models enter sporting the latest collection, every Dior show begins with the commotion surrounding the celebrity guests. Attending its Spring/Summer 2025 show was France’s first lady Brigitte Macron (who was received with a dignified level of attention), Rosalia, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jennifer Garner (all of whom entered with a decent level of commotion) and Blackpink’s Jisoo (just utter chaos).

They posed for photos in front of a grand gateway which read: “May the building of a strong mind and a strong body be the greatest work I have ever made.” It was an omen for the collection to come, one in which clothing’s main function is to support the human body and all its athletic capabilities. The Olympic and Paralympic Games may have finished, but a sporty spirit hangs around Paris, it seems.

The first woman to walk the runway was not a model, but an archer – Sofia Ginevra Giannì aka SAGG Napoli, the Italian sportswoman/artist. As a drumbeat thumped, Gianni shook her shoulders loose, pulled an arrow from her quiver and fired at a target down the other end of the runway. This continued throughout the show, and the soundtrack – FKA twigs’ ‘Eusexua,’ Charli XCX and Billie Eilish’s ‘Guess’ remix – was punctuated every now and again by the loud thwack of an arrow hitting its mark.

As for the clothes, there were tracksuits and motorcycle jackets, swimming costumes and form-fitting athleisurewear, all made in a range of technical fabrics and all but a few looks entirely in black and white. Hair was held out of models’ faces by headbands (or were they sweatbands?). Accessories told a similar story: a satchel was strapped across a model’s body, worn as an archer would wear her quiver. Another carried a duffle bag as if she were en route to an impossibly fashionable gym. There wasn’t a heel in sight. One standout shoe was a cross between a sneaker and a gladiator sandal.

The Grecian woman was certainly a figure creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri had in mind while designing the collection, which was presented at Musée Rodin. In a teaser interview posted to Instagram, Chiuri considers a statue of the huntress goddess Diana, wearing a short, draped toga tunic, a quiver of arrows at her back. She’s a woman on the move, agile and strong, much like the models were.