‘Life in Motion. The Beauty of Humanity in Motion.’ Last Friday, the Arena di Verona inaugurated the Winter Paralympic Games with a monumental ceremony produced by Filmmaster whose very heart, both tangible and intangible, lay precisely in that idea: the Beauty of Humanity in Motion.

Dressing this celebration, an event capable of speaking a language far broader than that of sport alone, was Costume Director Silvia Ortombina | Tiny Idols. A stylist who rose to prominence within the Italian music scene, in recent years Silvia has intertwined her artistic vision with the imagery of sport, becoming Fashion Editor of Athleta Mag and finding in physical effort a muse for her creative expression.

Proud of this latest milestone in her journey, we asked Silvia to trace a constellation of emotions, amplified by her Veronese roots, alongside reflections and biographical notes that help explain what the meeting point between fashion and sport means to her. The conversation also offered an opportunity to reflect on themes that are both highly specific and deeply relevant today, such as adaptive wear and sustainability.

Accompanying the interview is a gallery of her creations unveiled on the night in Verona, along with a selection of special editorials curated by Tiny Idols for Athleta Mag.

How did fashion and sport enter your life, and how much did your family shape this particular intersection?

“Actually, with this ceremony an important circle in my life both closes and opens again. Sport and fashion have always been very close to my family. My mother and my aunt ran a fashion company and, in the 1980s, they mainly produced skiwear and windbreakers: garments that became part of a very iconic sporting imagery, inseparably tied to that era. Later on, my uncle became the right-hand man of Peter Steinenbronn and carved out an important role in developing what we might call the ‘sport couture’ movement of the 1980s. I remember very clearly that, when I was a child, he would often come over to the house and spend hours sketching designs for his creations. One day, for instance, he gave me the Austrian team uniform from the Winter Olympics, which he had worked on. Watching those drawings come to life before my eyes was something that undoubtedly left a mark on me.”

At Athleta we tell the story of sport as an artistic and cultural form. Styling, in its own way, is also an artistic and cultural practice. What does it mean for you to be a stylist? And how would you describe your artistic philosophy?

“For me, being a stylist means building a visual language: creating images that tell the story of a person, a moment, an imaginary world… Images that carry a message. My philosophy often emerges from the meeting of different worlds. Cross-pollination is the key word: bringing spheres such as art, music, cinema and sport into dialogue with one another. I’m deeply interested in observing the body in motion: the discipline, the strength of the gesture. In that sense, sport is an extraordinary source of inspiration because it contains a profoundly authentic dimension. My work always tries to move between aesthetics and authenticity: creating images that hold symbolic meaning while remaining deeply human.”

Your professional rise took place in close contact with the Italian music scene. Later, you decided to place that alongside the world of sport, becoming Fashion Editor at Athleta. What kind of muse have you found in the imagery of sport?

“Music was my core field before sport, an incredible environment to work in. It taught me how powerfully image can become part of an artist’s narrative. When I began working more closely with sport, I discovered an entirely different imagery, yet equally powerful. The athlete remains radically anchored to themselves. The body tells the story of discipline, fatigue and resilience. That authenticity struck me deeply. Within the imagery of sport I found a very strong muse: the truth of the gesture. It’s an aesthetic that doesn’t arise from construction, but from action.”

What did you feel when you discovered you had been selected as Costume Director for the Paralympics? And what emotions emerge now, after seeing this major event take shape, particularly in a place as iconic for you as the Arena di Verona?

“When I received the news, the feeling was incredibly intense, almost difficult to describe. On one side there was a great sense of responsibility; on the other, an enormous sense of gratitude. The Paralympics represent something that goes beyond spectacle. They speak about possibility, transformation, and above all humanity. Within them coexist elements that are rarely seen together with such clarity: strength, fragility, and a very authentic form of beauty, one that arises from overcoming limits and from the ability to transform one’s body into a space of possibility. The fact that all of this took shape in a place like the Arena di Verona holds an even deeper meaning for me. Being from Verona, it’s a space filled with memory and emotion. Seeing it become the stage for such a powerful event, where strength and fragility meet and generate a new form of beauty, moves me deeply. What will probably remain most vivid for me, however, are the stories these young athletes shared with me during fittings and dressings: very intimate moments in which, behind every athlete, a personal journey emerged: one made of determination, falls and rebirths. That is where I truly felt the depth of this project.”

There is a significant difference between the role of stylist and that of Costume Director. What was it like translating the suggestions of other creatives into a visual grammar?

“The work of a costume director is very different from that of a stylist. It’s a bit like assembling a puzzle without having all the pieces in front of you from the beginning. Elements arrive progressively: from the director, the choreography, the music, the set design. Imagining how they will converse with one another even before seeing them truly together is the real challenge. It requires a different imaginative strength. As a stylist, you often work around the identity of a single person or artist; as a costume director, you must think on a far more collective, almost orchestral scale. The final design reveals itself gradually as the project takes shape.”

Another theme you’ve highlighted in several interviews is sustainability. What message did you want to bring forward?

“For me, sustainability is non-negotiable. At a moment like this, we simply cannot do without it, first and foremost for cultural reasons. In this project we worked extensively with the idea of circularity: reusing costumes, employing reclaimed materials, using fabrics sourced from social cooperatives. I wanted to show that even a very large event can emerge from a more conscious approach. Creativity does not necessarily depend on the accumulation of new things. Often it arises precisely from the ability to transform what already exists.”

Let’s talk about adaptive wear. Could you explain what it is to readers who may not be familiar with the concept?

“Adaptive wear is a field of design focused on creating garments that are accessible and functional for people with different physical abilities. It means rethinking closures, cuts, materials and fit in order to allow as many bodies as possible to wear a garment independently. In the Paralympic context, this theme naturally becomes central. Collaborating with Francesco Matera, who specializes in this field with Materia Adapt, was extremely stimulating. It pushed me to rethink the way a garment is designed, and to do so through the unique stories of the athletes we encountered.”

After this experience, what are your hopes for the future relationship between fashion and sport?

“I believe the dialogue between fashion and sport is destined to become increasingly compelling. Sport today is visual culture: it shapes identity and builds community. Fashion can help narrate these dimensions, but also make them more accessible. My hope is that this synergy continues to evolve in an authentic way, always keeping at its center the body, the gesture, and the humanity that sport represents.”